BioCurex Introduces OncoPet A RECAF Blood Test For Cancer Detection In Companion Animals
Canadian company BioCurex announced the development of OncoPet ™, a blood test to detect cancer in dogs. The United States is home to about 75 million dogs and, on average, owners spend $219 per year on veterinary visits. Four out of every 1,000 dogs gets cancer each year, although more than 50% of dogs ultimately die of cancer.
In a study of 116 dogs with cancer and 150 control dogs, the new cancer test detected 85% of the dogs with cancer at the 95% specificity level (5% false positives). Due to lack of regulatory requirements in both Canada and the U.S., the Canadian company BioCurex plans to begin marketing and selling the test within the next few months.
According to a 2006 American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) survey, 49.7% of survey respondents consider companion animals to be part of the family, and 48.2% consider pets to be companions. Between 1996 and 2006 the number of dog-owning households that spent $1,000 or more per year on visits to the veterinarian nearly quadrupled, from 2.2% to 8.4%. During 2006, dogs averaged 1.5 visits to the veterinarian.