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In addition to use in oncology, 99mTc-EC-G is
being evaluated as a functional imaging agent for
use in cardiac imaging. A canine cardiac study is
currently ongoing at the University of Virginia. The
company plans to amend the existing IND to initiate
a Phase II/III cardiology clinical trial to evaluate
combination imaging using a myocardial perfusion
imaging (MPI) agent and 99mTc-EC-G to diagnose the
presence of ischemia in patients that have recently
experienced a cardiac event.
Events such as ischemia cause the heart to change
from its normal metabolite free fatty acid to
glucose. Regions of the heart affected by ischemia
that use glucose as their metabolic energy source as
well as regions that experienced an Acute Cardiac
Event but have viable myocardium should localize
99mTc-EC-G.
The Company believes that combination imaging (dual
isotope imaging) using an MPI agent in combination
with 99mTc-EC-G could be very effective for
diagnosing and assessing ischemia while eliminating
the need for attenuation correction or a rest study.
Additional applications using combintion imaging
could include: assessment of ischemia in women who
are symptomatic for heart disease but have an
equivocal MPI stress study; diagnosing and staging
CHF; determining the presence and extent of
cardiotoxicity in patients receiving chemotherapy.
Sample images from the clinical trial follow:
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