A FISH on the Line

Vysis Inc., which is attempting to penetrate the market with its FISH DNA probe technology, got a boost in May when it announced a collaboration with Genentech Inc. to couple the FISH breast cancer test with Genentech's drug, Herceptin. Vysis hopes the deal will showcase FISH technology and attract other drug developers as partners. Genentech, meanwhile, needs such a test to better screen one class of patients to determine their suitability for treatment with Herceptin, in light of controversy over how accurate the existing IHC diagnostic test is in determining their Her2 status.

In the past year, diagnostics developer Vysis Inc. , a division of BP Amoco PLC , has sold off non-core assets and cut staff to bolster a shaky financial position. Its business has been hurt by the slow acceptance of FISH (fluorescent in situ hybridization), its DNA probe technology. But the company got a boost in May when it announced a collaboration with Genentech Inc. [See Deal] to extend use of its PathVysion FISH breast cancer test to assess patients being considered for treatment with Genentech's Herceptin therapeutic antibody against HER-2 , an arrangement that also extends to future clinical studies in other cancers where evidence of HER-2 amplification exists.

Vysis hopes the deal will serve to showcase its technology and attract other drug developers as partners. Genentech's need is...

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