Tarcine BioMed Inc., www.tarcine.com, is a medical diagnostic company, located in China (Zhongguancun Life Science Park, Beijing), offering affordable and accurate diagnostic solutions for the early detection and prevention of diseases. The company was founded in 2005 by a group of US-educated Chinese scientists based on molecular biology, cellular biology and immunology.  The company's core activities include discovery, manufacturing and marketing of novel non-invasive diagnostic reagents for the early detection and screening of life-threatening diseases. Tarcine’s initial focus will be on the SFDA regulatory approval and commercialization of their nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC), kidney transplant rejection, and bladder cancer diagnostic kits.

Cancer is a group of diseases in which cells are aggressive (grow and divide without respect to normal limits), invasive (invade and destroy adjacent tissues), and sometimes metastatic (spread to other locations in the body). According to the American Cancer Society (ACS), 7.6 million people died from cancer in the world during 2005. In the U.S. and other developed countries, cancer is presently responsible for about 25% of all deaths. The WHO estimated 9 million people will die from cancer in 2015 and 11.4 million in 2030. On a yearly basis, 0.5% of the population or 30 million is diagnosed with cancer. In China, there are 1.9 million new patients per annum with malignant tumors, and 1.7 million patients that die from cancer each year. 

Screening for cancer can lead to earlier diagnosis in specific cases. Cancer screening is an attempt to detect unsuspected cancers in an asymptomatic population. If signs of cancer are detected, more definitive and invasive follow up tests are performed to confirm the diagnosis. The intention of screening is to identify disease in a community early, thus enabling earlier intervention and management that could dramatically reduce mortality and suffering from a disease.

The early diagnosis and treatment of the disease have been repeatedly shown as the most effective and cost-efficient way to fight against various cancers. Surgery and other treatment usually work the best on early stage cancers, and early diagnosis and treatment could significantly improve patient life. Also early screening and diagnosis have proved cost efficient. For instance, a year ago a group of scientists in Taiwan published a cost-effectiveness analysis of colorectal cancer screening with stool DNA testing (BMC Cancer. NIH, 2006; 6: 136). A third-party payer perspective was adopted and the conclusion was that stool DNA testing every three, five, and ten years can reduce colorectal cancer mortality by 22%, 15%, and 9%, respectively. The associated incremental costs were $9,794, $9,335, and $7,717, per life-year saved when compared with no screening. Also in 2006, Dr. Lotan, an urologist at the University of Texas, Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas, presented new data regarding the cost effectiveness from screening versus not screening for bladder cancer, at the annual meeting of the American Urological Association held in Atlanta. His Marcov decision analysis model projected a gain of three life years and $101,000 saved per 1000 people screened based o­n a population with 4% incidence of bladder cancer. 

Four years ago, Tarcine was founded by a group of Amgen veterans and two UCLA professors. Now, Tarcine is led by a committed and experienced management team. In China, the team has established a well-rounded workforce with extensive experience in diagnostic product research, development, manufacturing and marketing. 100% of the employees have earned bachelor or above degrees, 41% with a PhD, and 30% with a master degree.

In the next five years Tarcine will build on the existing technology platforms, recruit high-level scientific and technical intelligence, and establish an institute for IVD research. Tarcine offers challenging opportunities across all areas of our company for both experienced professionals and recent graduates. Tarcine aims to become a competitive company in development of early detection tools.