Castle Biosciences, Inc., a provider of molecular diagnostics to improve cancer treatment decisions, today announced that the Accreditation Committee of the College of American Pathologists (CAP) has awarded accreditation to its new state-of-the-art laboratory facility in Phoenix, AZ based on results of a recent onsite inspection as part of the CAP’s Accreditation Programs.
CAP accreditation is awarded to facilities that meet the highest standards of quality in laboratory services. The 10,000-square-foot laboratory is also certified under the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments (CLIA).
Derek Maetzold
“Our laboratory’s CAP accreditation achievement validates our commitment to providing high-quality molecular diagnostic tests to improve patient care in cutaneous melanoma, uveal melanoma and other underserved cancers,” commented Derek Maetzold, President and CEO of Castle Biosciences. “We expanded our lab capacity to help meet the rapid uptake by physicians of our innovative prognostic tests. Our DecisionDx-Melanoma test, which provides an individual risk of recurrence in patients with cutaneous melanoma, was used in more than 7,100 patients in 2016, a growth rate of more than 97% over 2015.”
The U.S. federal government recognizes the CAP Laboratory Accreditation Program, begun in the early 1960s, as being equal to or more stringent than the government’s own inspection program.
During the CAP accreditation process, designed to ensure the highest standard of care for all laboratory patients, inspectors examine the laboratory’s records and quality control of procedures for the preceding two years. CAP inspectors also examine laboratory staff qualifications, equipment, facilities, safety program and record, and overall management.
About the College of American Pathologists
As the world’s largest organization of board-certified pathologists, the College of American Pathologists (CAP) serves patients, pathologists, and the public by fostering and advocating excellence in the practice of pathology and laboratory medicine worldwide. The CAP’s Laboratory Improvement Programs, initiated more than 65 years ago, currently have customers in more than 100 countries, accrediting 8,000 laboratories and providing proficiency testing to 20,000 laboratories worldwide.
About Castle Biosciences
Castle Biosciences is a molecular diagnostics company dedicated to helping patients and their physicians make the best possible treatment and follow-up care decisions based on the individual molecular signature of their tumor. T