Healthcare Industry News:  Prostate Cancer 

Diagnostics Personalized Medicine Oncology

 News Release - October 14, 2011

Health Discovery Corporation Agrees with the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force’s Position Against PSA-Based Screening for Prostate Cancer and Believes Its Four-Gene Assay for Prostate Cancer is the Best Alternative to PSA

Ninety-five percent of men with PSA-detected cancer who are followed for 12 years do not die from that cancer even in the absence of definitive treatment according to the USPSTF

SAVANNAH, Ga.--(Healthcare Sales & Marketing Network)-- Health Discovery Corporation (OTCBB:HDVY.ob ) today announced its agreement with the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force’s (USPSTF) stance against the use of the prostate-specific antigen (PSA), a test used by 90 percent of U.S. men to screen for Prostate Cancer. In a draft recommendation released Friday, the Task Force sided against the PSA test, stating that patients are substantially more likely to be harmed by the adverse effects of aggressive treatment prompted by ambiguous test results than they are to reap benefits such as better health or longer life. HDC agrees with reported results that a patient’s quality of life may suffer from overtreatment caused by anxiety, urinary incontinence, erectile dysfunction, impotence, coronary heart decease, diabetes, increased breast size and hot flashes, depending on treatment. HDC adds that diminished reliance on PSA testing will also help reduce cases of infection and/or nerve damage that have been reported by some patients following biopsy procedures. However, HDC supports Prostate Cancer screening with a more reliable Prostate Cancer test and believes that such screening will save lives.

"In a recent clinical trial, HDC’s urine based four-gene Prostate Cancer test successfully outperformed serum PSA," stated Dr. Herbert Fritsche, Chief Science Officer, Health Discovery Corporation and former Professor of Laboratory Medicine and Chief of the Clinical Chemistry Section at The University of Texas, M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas. "The HDC urine-based four gene Prostate Cancer test was shown to identify 90% of cancers while eliminating 50% of unnecessary biopsies and therefore significantly reducing potentially unnecessary treatments including surgeries that would otherwise have been performed."

Further explaining the advanced development of HDC’s urine-based Prostate Cancer test, Stephen D. Barnhill, M.D., Chairman and CEO, Health Discovery Corporation, notes that, "We have now demonstrated to our satisfaction that the 4-gene urine test for clinically significant Prostate Cancer outperformed serum PSA and Digital Rectal Exam (DRE), as well as published data for PCA3 and TMPRSS-ERG assays for the early detection of Prostate Cancer.” Furthermore, additional studies are planned to explore the potential of the 4-gene test to distinguish patients with aggressive disease that require aggressive therapy from those who have a more benign cancer and do not need aggressive treatment.

Quest Diagnostics (NYSE:DGX) has acquired a Non-Exclusive royalty based license for the laboratory developed test (LDT) version of the HDC urine based four gene Prostate Cancer test. HDC continues to have discussions with other clinical laboratories interested in licensing the LDT version of its urine Prostate Cancer test.

Abbott (NYSE:ABT ) has acquired a worldwide Exclusive royalty based license to develop an in-vitro diagnostic test kit for the HDC urine Prostate Cancer test.

Established by a congressional mandate in 1984, the USPSTF is an independent panel of non-Federal experts in prevention and evidence-based medicine and is composed of primary care providers such as internists, pediatricians, family physicians, gynecologists/obstetricians, nurses, and health behavior specialists. The Task Force conducts scientific evidence reviews of a broad range of clinical preventive health care services and develops recommendations for primary care clinicians and health systems. These recommendations are published in the form of Recommendation Statements.

About Health Discovery Corporation

Health Discovery Corporation is a molecular diagnostics company that uses advanced mathematical techniques to analyze large amounts of data to uncover patterns that might otherwise be undetectable. It operates primarily in the emerging field of personalized medicine where such tools are critical to scientific discovery. Its primary business consists of licensing its intellectual property and developing its own product line of biomarker-based diagnostic tests that include human genes and genetic variations, as well as gene, protein, and metabolic expression differences and image analysis in digital pathology and radiology. For more information, see www.healthdiscoverycorp.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This document contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, the accuracy of which is necessarily subject to risks and uncertainties, including, without limitation, statements regarding future performance, opportunities and investments, and anticipated results in general. From time to time the Company may make other forward-looking statements in relation to other matters, including without limitation, commercialization plans and strategic partnerships. Actual results may differ materially due to a variety of factors, including, among other things, the acceptance of our approach to applying mathematics, computer science and physics into the disciplines of biology, organic chemistry and medicine and our products and technologies associated with those approaches, the ability to develop and commercialize new drugs, therapies or other products based on our approaches, and other factors set forth from time to time in the Company’s Securities and Exchange Commission filings.

All forward-looking statements and cautionary statements included in this document are made as of the date hereof based on information available to the Company as of the date hereof, and the Company assumes no obligation to update any forward-looking statement or cautionary statement.


Source: Health Discovery Corp

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