GE HealthCare and Mayo Clinic today announced the MI-BET (Molecular Imaging Biomarker-Based End of Therapy Trial) research collaboration, a novel theranostics study designed to explore a more personalized approach to radioligand therapy (RLT) for patients with advanced prostate cancer. This collaboration is a direct result of the 2023 Strategic Radiology Research Alliance between Mayo Clinic and GE HealthCare, aimed at transforming the experience of patients and clinicians in the practice of radiology and the delivery of novel therapies.
Radioligand therapy is an emerging treatment approach within theranostics that combines targeted radiopharmaceutical diagnostics and therapies, allowing clinicians to identify and treat cancer with greater precision. Today, many patients receiving RLT follow a standardized preset number of treatment cycles. MI-BET is designed to evaluate whether imaging- and biomarker-informed insights can support a more personalized approach to each patient's care. In this case, treatment may be adapted via a pause in RLT treatment. The decision to apply this pause is directly determined from the individual patient's disease response over time.
"This collaboration is an example of how Mayo Clinic leads in discovery by integrating novel technologies into our practice and accelerating innovation across research and clinical care to advance the future of medicine," says Andrew Danielsen, chief business development officer at Mayo Clinic. "By bringing together complementary expertise and capabilities, we can enable our world-class researchers and physicians to develop new insights, expand treatment possibilities, and ultimately provide the best outcomes for our patients globally."
The MI-BET study will use GE HealthCare's StarGuide SPECT/CT technology alongside MIM Software's MIM LesionID Pro to track how tumors are responding to treatment throughout therapy. By integrating imaging data with clinical outcomes and blood-based biomarkers, the Mayo Clinic research team is exploring these combined insights, which may help inform treatment decisions and potentially support the development of predictive markers for patient response. Predictive marker insights could enable researchers and clinicians to anticipate how patients will respond before or early in treatment, further enabling physicians to make adaptive treatment decisions.
"Personalizing therapy is both a scientific pursuit and an opportunity to expand patient access," says Geoffrey Johnson, M.D., Ph.D., chair of the Radiopharmaceutical Trial Team at Mayo Clinic Comprehensive Cancer Center. "Theranostics, and studies such as MI-BET, give us an important opportunity to rethink how and when we treat cancer. By evaluating response earlier in their treatment, we can generate data to drive approaches that could help reduce unnecessary therapy while expanding access to care for wider populations."
This effort supports a broader goal of expanding access to advanced theranostic care so that scientific advances can benefit a wide range of patients. The study is designed to encourage broad participation through patient outreach, collaboration with community and advocacy organizations, and the use of approaches such as telemedicine that may help reduce barriers to enrollment and engagement.
Beyond evaluating treatment duration, MI-BET also seeks to contribute to the broader evolution of theranostics by exploring new imaging biomarkers and data-driven approaches designed to support clinical decision-making. These efforts reflect a growing shift in oncology toward more adaptive, patient-specific care models.
"Making theranostics truly adaptive and personalized requires strong clinical evidence and a deeper understanding of how patients respond to therapy," says Sergio Calvo, global general manager, Theranostics, at GE HealthCare. "Through our collaboration with Mayo Clinic, we are exploring how imaging and data-driven insights can help inform more individualized treatment decisions, support the broader adoption of these approaches and contribute to the continued growth of precision care in oncology."
MI-BET research and activities will be based at Mayo Clinic's campus in Rochester, Minnesota, leveraging both organizations' strengths in clinical practice, research and product development. Additionally, Mayo Clinic is the first U.S. site to explore the clinical benefits that could be achieved with GE HealthCare's next-generation SPECT/CT StarGuide GX* technology. This includes exploring the potential for reduction in scan time and increasing the precision in tumor assessments.
* StarGuide GX is CE marked. Not approved or cleared by the FDA. Not available for sale in the United States.
