Agendia Announces Colorectal Cancer Collaboration With AstraZeneca and The Netherlands Cancer Institute

By Agendia B.v., PRNE
Monday, May 9, 2011

AMSTERDAM and IRVINE, California, May 10, 2011 - Agendia, an innovative molecular cancer diagnostics company,
today announced that it has partnered with AstraZeneca and The Netherlands
Cancer Institute (NKI) to accelerate the development of targeted therapies
for colorectal cancer patients. The announcement marks a unique collaboration
between Agendia, developer of the "MammaPrint" breast cancer molecular
diagnostic test, a major research-based pharmaceutical company and a leading
national cancer institute to tackle a cancer that results in approximately
500,000 deaths annually in Europe and the United States.

"In AstraZeneca and NKI, we have found two partners who have
long been committed to developing innovative therapies to fight colorectal
cancer," said Bernhard Sixt, CEO and cofounder of Agendia. "Agendia, NKI and
AstraZeneca are working together to identify specific molecular subtypes in
colorectal cancer. Thus, the collaboration has the potential to benefit not
only the direct participants, but also the scientific community as a whole on
the basis of providing a much greater understanding of the various disease
types in the colorectal field. A key feature of this collaboration is that
personalized medicine diagnostics may be developed far earlier in the
development of new drugs than has previously been possible. Our collaboration
marks a continued shift in how we think about companion diagnostics and how
they will be developed in the years to come."

As part of the collaboration, Agendia will provide molecular
data, bioinformatics support and diagnostic expertise to assist AstraZeneca
in defining subpopulations within colorectal cancer, with a view to providing
the basis for discovery and development of novel medicines suited to
individual disease types in the area of colorectal cancer. Agendia's
participation follows its success with the "Symphony" breast cancer genomic
profile, which includes MammaPrint(R), the first and only FDA-cleared breast
cancer recurrence assay.

"AstraZeneca is committed to pursuing new and innovative
collaborations to accelerate the delivery of promising therapies to patients,
thus we are pleased to have partnered with two organizations that bring
complementary and world-leading capabilities to our colorectal cancer
programs", said George Orphanides, Head of the Colorectal Cancer Disease Area
at AstraZeneca. "Researchers have known for some time that there are
different subtypes of colorectal cancer. The aim of this collaboration is to
develop new therapies tailored to specific groups of colorectal cancer
patients."

"Building on our discoveries in breast cancer, we have
identified distinct molecular subtypes in colorectal cancer, each responding
differently to various therapies," said Rene Bernards, professor of molecular
carcinogenesis at NKI and cofounder of Agendia. "Along with our new partners,
we aim to indentify drivers of the oncogenic process in each of these
subtypes."

About Agendia

Agendia (www.Agendia.com) is an innovative molecular
diagnostic company, striving to develop more effective, individualized
treatments within reach of patients. Building on a genomics platform for
tumor gene expression profiling, the company's tests help physicians more
accurately select a course of cancer treatment for their patients. Agendia
markets four products, with several new genomic tests under development. In
addition, Agendia collaborates with pharmaceutical companies to develop
companion diagnostic tests in the area of oncology. Agendia is based in
Amsterdam, the Netherlands and in Irvine, California.

MEDIA CONTACT: Valerie Carter, Ricochet Public Relations, +1-202-316-0143 Mobile, vcarter at ricochetpr.com

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