Medical device maker Clarient Inc. said Monday it signed an exclusive license to technology aimed making better tests for cancer.

The company said it licensed a test that can identify the MUC1 protein from privately held Minerva Biotechnologies. The protein is a potential biomarker that could help identify various types of cancer. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Clarient said it could take about a year of further development to better evaluate the test's potential.

Shares of Clarient rose 39 cents, or 16.6 percent, to $2.74 in morning trading. The stock has traded between $1 and $4.43 over the last 52 weeks.