Laboratory Corporation of America-Registered Trademark- Holdings
358 South Main Street
Burlington, NC 27215
Telephone: 336-584-5171
Contact: 336-436-4855 Pamela Sherry
Shareholder Direct: 800-LAB-0401
www.labcorp.com
LABCORP-REGISTERED TRADEMARK- PRESENTS HIV STUDY SUGGESTING FREQUENTLY
MONITORED PATIENTS SHOW BETTER SUPPRESSION OF HIV VIRAL LOAD
LABCORP-REGISTERED TRADEMARK- RELEASES THE LATEST TRENDS ON HIV VIRAL
LOAD TO BE PRESENTED AT THE INTERSCIENCE CONFERENCE ON ANTIMICROBIAL
AGENTS AND CHEMOTHERAPY
BURLINGTON, N.C., September 19, 2000 - Laboratory Corporation of
America-Registered Trademark- Holdings (LabCorp-Registered Trademark-)
(NYSE: LH), the nation's leading provider of HIV tests, today presented
its latest findings on HIV viral load trends in the United States at
the Interscience Conference on Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy
(ICAAC) in Toronto, Canada. HIV viral load is a measure of the amount
of virus in a patient's blood. One of the conclusions reached from
this ongoing study was that patients who were more frequently monitored
had greater suppression of HIV viral load. This supports the belief
that frequent blood monitoring and associated adjustments in therapy
lead to more accurate intervention by treating physicians. The study
was a collaborative effort with the University of North Carolina's
Center for AIDS Research and the School of Public Health's
Biostatistics Department.
LabCorp examined over 600,000 test results based on the patients' age,
sex, race, geography, and frequency of monitoring and found the
following trends: (1) the number of patients with undetectable viral
load has risen dramatically from 9% in 1996 to 44% by the end of 1999,
(2) patients with lower initial viral loads were more likely to have
suppressed viral loads, (3) viral rebound occurred in more than half
the patients within a year, (4) male patients, older patients or
patients from the Western US were more likely to have an undetectable
viral load, and (5) pediatric patients had the highest initial viral
loads and were least likely to have suppressed viral loads.
"The results from this study will provide HIV researchers and care
providers a clearer understanding of the factors associated with
greater suppression of HIV viral load," said Dr. Hawazin Faruki,
LabCorp's Vice President of Operations for the Center for Molecular
Biology and Pathology and the lead author of the study. "With the
breadth and depth of information inherent in LabCorp's database, we
will be able to look at these trends in the treatment of HIV around the
country on a scale previously unavailable to researchers." LabCorp
expects the value of the HIV database to manifest itself throughout the
coming year as its researchers begin to leverage the information to aid
other researchers across the entire life sciences community, from basic
research to pharmaceutical development.
The results from this study are based on one of the largest samples of
HIV viral load tests ever taken. LabCorp's proprietary database,
dating back to 1996, contains 601,352 serially monitored patient HIV
viral load records, including 41,536 patients with four or more
results. The 601,352 test records were examined to obtain information
about viral load measurement trends over time based on age, sex,
geography, and other factors. The study examined 286,873 patient
records closely to answer questions about average time intervals for
changes to undetectable viral load or average time intervals to viral
rebound. To ensure patient confidentiality, each patient record was
translated into a record number containing only the date, test, age,
sex, zip code, and test result.
LabCorp has been an innovator in adopting many of the latest
technologies to assist physicians in treating HIV patients. The Center
for Molecular Biology and Pathology, in Research Triangle Park (RTP),
North Carolina, develops applications for polymerase chain reaction
(PCR) technology, and National Genetics Institute in Los Angeles is an
industry leader in developing novel, highly sensitive PCR methods for
testing hepatitis C and other infectious agents. Through its Center for
Molecular Biology and Pathology, LabCorp was the first national
commercial laboratory to offer polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing
for early detection of HIV infection, and is one of the few commercial
laboratories offering HIV genotyping and phenotyping for resistance
testing. Specialists at the Center's infectious disease laboratory
focus on state-of-the-art molecular diagnostics using PCR and DNA
probes to improve patient care by rapidly detecting, identifying, and
quantifying pathogens. The facility maintains a team of expert
professionals that specialize in a wide variety of esoteric testing
services, cutting-edge research and development, education, and
training in such areas as oncology, genetics, and infectious disease.
Laboratory Corporation of America-Registered Trademark- Holdings is one
of the world's largest clinical laboratory testing companies, with
annual revenues of $1.7 billion in 1999. Eighteen thousand employees
serve more than 100,000 clients, offering more than 2,000 routine tests
and esoteric diagnostic procedures.
The Company noted that each of the above forward-looking statements is
subject to change based on various important factors, including without
limitation, competitive actions in the marketplace and adverse actions
of governmental and other third-party payors. Further information on
potential factors that could affect the Company's financial results is
included in the Company's Form 10-K for the year ended December 31,
1999 and subsequent SEC filings.
