JW Holdings has obtained a patent in the United States for the world’s first multi-biomarker diagnostic kit that can detect pancreatic cancer early only through a simple blood test, raising expectations for its venture into the world’s largest medical device market.

The U.S. patent is the third global grant for the Korean bio-tech company`s technology following patent rights in Japan and Europe. The original technology was transferred from a Yonsei University research team led by Prof. Paik Young-ki who won a Korean patent in 2017.

JW Holdings said on Monday it is now better positioned to fast track its commercial development and enter overseas in-vitro diagnostics markets including the U.S., which is the world’s biggest medical equipment market.

The new liquid biopsy technology is significant as an existing detection method relies on carbohydrate antigen (CA19-9), which mainly responds to patients with late-stage pancreatic cancer.

But JW Holdings’ multi-biomarker diagnostic kit can also detect CFB, a complement factor that appears in early patients.

Pancreatic cancer kills about 1,000 persons each day worldwide and it affects about 6,600 people in Korea each year. The five-year relative survival rate for patients with pancreatic cancer is a mere 11 percent, the lowest among all cancer types, to heighten the significance of early diagnosis. Pancreatic cancer often progresses asymptomatically as the pancreas is a retroperitoneal organ, sitting deep in the torso, and its symptoms are mostly non-specific, making it difficult to detect it at early stages.

Buoyed by the news, the Kospi-listed JW Holdings’ stocks on Monday surged 17 percent to 6,830 won, extending its winning streak for the second session in a row. But its stocks closed Tuesday 9.37 percent lower at 6,190 won.

By Chung Seul-gi and Minu Kim

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