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Underweight And Very Severely Obese Patients At Risk Following Liver Transplantation
A recent study by doctors at the University of Washington explained that patients who are significantly underweight or very severely obese prior to liver transplantation are at increased risk of death following transplantation surgery. These findings, from the largest known observation of liver transplantation at the extremes of BMI, are published in the August issue of Liver Transplantation, a journal published by John Wiley & Sons on behalf of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases.

New Medicare Nursing Home Guidance To Include Quality Of Life And Environment Requirements
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued new guidance for nursing home surveyors, further defining and clarifying several important dimensions of care to help improve nursing home residents" quality of life and environment.
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Large-Scale Analysis Finds Bariatric Surgery Relatively Safe
Advances in weight-loss surgery have made it as safe as any routine surgical procedure, according to a Duke University Medical Center researcher who reviewed data from nearly 60,000 patients and found it resulted in low complication and mortality rates.
Sexual Health

Genomic Health's Oncotype DX(R) Colon Cancer Test Predicts Individualized Recurrence Risk For Stage II Colon Cancer Patients

Genomic Health, Inc. (Nasdaq: GHDX) announced positive results from the landmark QUASAR validation study, which demonstrated that the Oncotype DX(R) colon cancer test can independently predict individual recurrence risk in stage II colon cancer patients following surgery. Importantly, the Oncotype DX colon cancer Recurrence Score(R) provided additional independent clinical value beyond standard measures. The study showed that the colon cancer Recurrence Score maintained significance (p=0.008), independent of mismatch repair (MMR), also known as MSI (Microsatellite Instability), T-stage, nodes examined, grade and lymphovascular invasion. These findings, which were selected from more than 4,000 accepted abstracts to be featured in the American Society of Clinical Oncology"s (ASCO) advance presscast earlier today, address a large unmet need in the treatment of colon cancer by validating a clinical tool that can significantly improve risk assessment in the treatment planning for stage II colon cancer patients. Genomic Health announced these data in conjunction with ASCO"s advance presscast presentation and subsequent embargo lift of all accepted abstracts today, and looks forward to the full data presentation at ASCO"s annual meeting in Orlando, Florida on Saturday, May 30 at 3 p.m. ET. "These clinical results represent an important advancement in bringing personalized medicine to the tens of thousands of people who suffer from stage II colon cancer, as the availability of precise markers to determine likelihood of recurrence risk are limited in today"s clinical setting," said David Kerr, M.D., DSc, professor of cancer medicine at the University of Oxford. "With these results we have a validated multi-gene test to predict colon cancer recurrence that, when available, will enable physicians to better select patients for aggressive treatment beyond surgery." David Kerr, Richard Gray, Ph.D., professor of medical statistics at the University of Birmingham, and Philip Quirke, B.M., M.D. FRCPath, professor of pathology and tumor biology at the University of Leeds, are the principal investigators of the QUASAR validation study. A second endpoint evaluating a separate score, with a distinct set of genes, designed to predict which patients experience greater proportional benefit of 5-fluorouracil/leucovorin (5FU/LV) following surgery was not met (p=0.19). "The positive findings from the QUASAR validation study strongly support a new paradigm for assessing recurrence risk in stage II colon cancer, emphasizing the critical role of three measures, Recurrence Score, MMR/MSI and T-stage," said Steve Shak, M.D., chief medical officer of Genomic Health. "We believe the Oncotype DX colon cancer Recurrence Score will provide the greatest clinical utility for treatment selection in the more than 70 percent of patients for whom MMR/MSI and T-stage are uninformative." The Oncotype DX colon cancer Recurrence Score maintained its independent significance in predicting the likelihood of recurrence risk (p=0.008), when analyzed in the presence of all the other factors. T4 stage (p=0.005) and MMR deficiency (pAbout Genomic Health Genomic Health, Inc. (Nasdaq: GHDX) is a life science company focused on the development and commercialization of genomic-based clinical laboratory services for cancer that allow physicians and patients to make individualized treatment decisions. In 2004, Genomic Health launched its first test, the Oncotype DX breast cancer test, which has been shown to predict the likelihood of breast cancer recurrence and the likelihood of chemotherapy benefit in a large portion of early-stage breast cancer patients. The company was founded in 2000 and is located in Redwood City, California. This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including statements relating to the applicability of clinical study results to actual outcomes; the company"s plans to commercialize a test for colon cancer and the proposed timing of such commercialization; the company"s beliefs regarding the benefits of a test for colon cancer and the belief that Oncotype DX should be integrated into standard breast cancer treatment planning for patients in Japan. Forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially, and reported results should not be considered as an indication of future performance. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to: The risks associated with commercialization of a new test; the risk that the company may not obtain or maintain sufficient levels of reimbursement for its tests; the risks and uncertainties associated with the regulation of its tests; the applicability of clinical study results to actual outcomes; and the other risks set forth in the company"s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the risks set forth in the company"s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2009. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date hereof. Genomic Health disclaims any obligation to update these forward-looking statements. The Genomic Health logo, Oncotype, Oncotype DX and Recurrence Score are trademarks or registered trademarks of Genomic Health, Inc. All other trademarks and service marks are the property of their respective owners. Genomic Health


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