Pennsylvania Bio issues new report on Pennsylvania's bioscience companies' efforts for cancer research

Sep 12 2010

Pennsylvania Bio (www.pennsylvaniabio.org) today issued a new report on cancer that details the research happening through Pennsylvania companies to develop new products to diagnose and treat cancer. This new report is the latest in the Pennsylvania Bio MedTRACK Patient Impact Report series.

“This report demonstrates that Pennsylvania's bioscience companies are at the forefront of developing the tools to diagnose cancer earlier and the therapeutics to treat the various forms of this life-threatening disease”

The report features information on more than 300 therapeutics and diagnostics in development or awaiting approval and 140 marketed products from nearly 50 Pennsylvania companies. Companies with operations in Pennsylvania are working on treatments for more than 40 types of cancer including acute myelogenous leukemia, breast cancer, brain tumors, leukemia, prostate cancer, and solid tumors.

According to the American Cancer Society (ACS), more than 1.5 million Americans were expected to be diagnosed with cancer and 569,500 were expected to die of cancer in 2010 - that's more than 1,500 Americans per day. In Pennsylvania, the ACS predicted that more than 75,000 Pennsylvanians would be diagnosed with cancer by the end of the year, and that cancer would be the second leading cause of death among Pennsylvanians.

"This report demonstrates that Pennsylvania's bioscience companies are at the forefront of developing the tools to diagnose cancer earlier and the therapeutics to treat the various forms of this life-threatening disease," said Christopher P. Molineaux, president of Pennsylvania Bio. "We are proud of the research that is taking place that demonstrates progress for patients, not only in Pennsylvania, but around the world."

The data for the Patient Impact Reports was compiled using the Pennsylvania Bio MedTRACK Database. Not all of the research captured in the report is happening within the borders of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, but it is being conducted through companies that have significant operations in the commonwealth.