Durham spin-out FScan is exclusively licensing a prostate cancer diagnostic technology to Glide Pharmaceuticals Technology.

FScan, a Durham University spin-out, is licensing its prostate cancer diagnostic technology to UK-based pharmaceutical development and device company Glide Pharma. The license is exclusive and worldwide.

The deal includes an undisclosed upfront payment, as well as development and commercial milestone payments, as well as royalties on all future sales. Glide also has the exclusive rights to adapt the technology for other conditions.

The prostate cancer test measures citrate levels – a derivative of citric acid – in seminal fluid. The link between prostate cancer and the level of citrate allows an efficient detection which, thanks to FScan’s technology, can now be made through a non-invasive and rapid procedure.

Glide plans to bring the technology to market first in the US as an analyte-specific reagent, which is a compound added to existing testing systems that would react to the citrate. It will then seek regulatory approval in both the US and Europe for the dedicated test.

Mark Carnegie-Brown, CEO at Glide, said: “Licensing this novel diagnostic technology is an important strategic step for Glide as it broadens both our pipeline and technology base, offers the potential of early revenues, and longer-term plays to our strengths in device development and scale-up. We believe this innovative technology has the potential to revolutionise the prostate cancer diagnostic market, where there is a clear need for an accurate, rapid non-invasive test.”