Surgeons Across the U.S. Using Cancer-Targeting Imaging Technology During Surgery to Detect Cancer that May Have Otherwise Been Overlooked with Conventional Methods
West Lafayette, IN – June 11, 2025 – Momentum for the use of CYTALUX® (pafolacianine) injection during cancer surgeries is growing rapidly. On Target Laboratories is honored to announce today that more than 1,000 surgical operations have leveraged its molecular imaging technology since its commercial availability. As more and more surgical oncologists at top hospital systems across the country embrace the use of this innovation each day, the company expects to cross many additional milestones this year.
The need for the capabilities of CYTALUX, the FIRST and ONLY FDA approved targeted molecular imaging agent that illuminates lung and ovarian cancer in real-time during surgery, has never been greater. Lung cancer is a leading cause of cancer deaths – with nearly 235,000 new diagnoses and 125,000 deaths estimated in the U.S., in 2024. Furthermore, up to 55 percent of people with lung cancer who undergo surgery with curative intent have a recurrence. Ovarian cancer poses a similarly serious threat, ranking as the leading cause of gynecologic cancer death among women.
“Our game changing technology is transforming oncologic procedures by enabling more precise and complete resections,” said Bill Peters, CEO of On Target Laboratories. “We are humbled by the opportunity to help make CYTALUX the standard of care in cancer surgery. Congratulations to the entire On Target Laboratories team on reaching this important milestone.”
CYTALUX binds specifically to cancer cells and illuminates with the use of a specialized camera during surgery, offering surgeons unprecedented real-time visualization. In nearly one in ten cases, CYTALUX uncovered additional cancer not previously detected on preoperative imaging, enabling the removal of disease that might otherwise have been left behind.
“It’s encouraging to see the potential we observed in clinical trials now being reflected in real-world surgical practice,” said Dr. Inderpal Sarkaria, Chief of Thoracic Surgery at UT Southwestern Medical Center and CYTALUX clinical trial investigator. “CYTALUX is helping surgeons visualize lesions that are difficult to detect with conventional methods, supporting more precise and lung-sparing operations for patients.”
References
Sarkaria IS, Martin LW, Rice DC, Blackmon SH, Slade HB, Singhal S; ELUCIDATE Study Group. Pafolacianine for intraoperative molecular imaging of cancer in the lung: The ELUCIDATE trial. J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg. 2023 Mar 3:S0022-5223(23)00185-X. doi: 10.1016/j.jtcvs.2023.02.025. Epub 2023 Mar 02. PMID: 37019717
About On Target Laboratories, Inc.
On Target Laboratories discovers and develops targeted intraoperative molecular imaging agents to illuminate cancer during surgery. Their molecular imaging technology, based on the pioneering work of Philip S. Low, PhD, Purdue University’s Presidential Scholar for Drug Discovery and the Ralph C. Corley Distinguished Professor of Chemistry, is comprised of a near-infrared dye and a targeting molecule, or ligand, that binds to receptors overexpressed on cancer cells. The imaging agents illuminate the cancerous tissue, which may enable surgeons to detect more cancer that otherwise may have been left behind.
CYTALUX, the Company’s first product, received FDA approval of a New Drug Application for ovarian cancer in November 2021 and a supplemental New Drug Application for lung cancer in December 2022. CYTALUX targets the folate receptors commonly found on many cancers, binds to the cancerous tissue, and illuminates under near-infrared light. A single dose of the agent is administered via intravenous infusion prior to surgery and assists surgeons in visually identifying additional cancerous tissue to be removed during the operation. For more information and to view full Prescribing Information visit www.ontargetlabs.com and www.cytalux.com.