HealthLinx partners to distribute OvPlex in Spain

HealthLinx (ASX:HTX) has signed on Oryzon Genomics to be the exclusive distributor of its flagship OvPlex ovarian cancer diagnostics product in Spain.

Victoria-headquartered HealthLinx now expects the OvPlex biomarker measurement product to reach the Spanish market in 2012.

The legally-binding distribution agreement with Oryzon Genomics also includes an option to extend its reach to new markets – Portugal, Andorra, France and Italy.

HealthLinx estimates that the market for ovarian cancer diagnostics in these combined markets to be around 500,000 tests per year.

Oryzon Genomic focuses on using biomarkers in the fields of diagnostics, personal medicine and therapy. Oryzon has four other diagnostic cancer tests in various stages of development, with the first – an endometrial cancer test – due to be released in Q1 2012. The other products will be for colorectal, bladder and prostate cancer diagnostics.

HealthLinx first launched OvPlex in the Australian market in 2008, and in the UK and Republic of Ireland in February 2010.

The company is in the middle of conducting a 1,100 patient study of the effectiveness of two biomarkers targeted by OvPlex as cancer diagnostics, and has published some encouraging sets of results.

Healthlinx (ASX:HTX) shares got a boost from the announcement, gaining 9.09% to $0.012 as of 4pm on Tuesday. The shares have been trending down all financial year, after starting FY12 at $0.034.