A critical unmet need
A vector-borne disease caused by infection with the parasite Trypanosoma cruzi, Chagas disease can also be acquired through food, blood transfusion, organ transplant, or congenitally. Existing drugs for treatment offer varying efficacy during the chronic phase of the disease and are known to have adverse effects.
The variety of T. cruzi strains that cause Chagas disease across its endemic range are challenging to detect, and no single assay has proven sufficiently sensitive to date for reliable diagnosis. Furthermore, while efforts are underway to develop new drugs to treat Chagas disease, a major limitation is the lack of a reliable, standardized and validated test of treatment response to measure the efficacy of drug candidates and to assess whether treatment has successfully eradicated the infection for purposes of clinical management.
