DuChemBio’s ProstaSeek gains insurance coverage for prostate cancer PET diagnosis

DuChemBio has secured insurance coverage for ProstaSeek, its advanced PSMA-targeted diagnostic radiopharmaceutical for prostate cancer, following a positive evaluation by the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service (HIRA) for use in PET/CT procedures.

As a result, ProstaSeek is now eligible for insurance coverage for these procedures. It can be used to precisely diagnose metastatic or recurrent cancer sites in patients with prostate cancer at moderate or higher risk of metastasis, as well as those suspected of recurrence due to rising prostate-specific antigen (PSA) levels after initial surgery or radiation therapy.

ProstaSeek is an F-18–based, PSMA-targeted PET diagnostic agent. It precisely tracks the PSMA protein, which is overexpressed in prostate cancer cells, increasing the detection rate for recurrent early-stage prostate cancer by more than threefold compared with existing diagnostic methods such as MRI or CT.

“The coverage of ProstaSeek is expected to play a crucial role in diagnosing prostate cancer in domestic medical settings. It will also guide future treatment directions and enhance the efficiency of targeted therapies, including radiation therapy,” DuChemBio CEO Kim Sang-woo said.

It can also serve as an essential diagnostic step when prescribing PSMA-targeted therapies, including Novartis’ prostate cancer treatment Pluvicto. As a result, it improves access to targeted therapies for prostate cancer patients, Kim added.

According to National Cancer Registry statistics, the number of prostate cancer patients in Korea reached 20,754 in 2022, increasing by about 6.7 percent annually.

ProstaSeek is the exclusive licensed Korean product of “Posluma,” which received approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Korea became the second country worldwide to approve it, following the U.S. It is also listed in the U.S. National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) and ASCO guidelines, which recognize it as an international standard diagnostic method.