The U.S. FDA has finally let fly with a draft rule for regulation of lab-developed tests (LDTs), an 83-page document that delves into the legal controversies regarding whether the agency has the requisite statutory authority. However, Allyson Mullen, a director in the D.C. office of Hyman, Phelps & McNamara P.C., told BioWorld that the emergence of this draft rule doesn’t mean Congress won’t eventually be dragged back into the LDT fray, particularly if stakeholders litigate to overturn the draft.
Following the receipt of a U.K. Conformity Assessed (UKCA) mark for its kidney function diagnostic software, the CKD Screening Prioritizer (CSP), Gendius Ltd. is hoping to soon receive CE mark and then U.S. FDA approval next year. Given that people with type 2 diabetes are at a higher risk of developing chronic kidney disease, Gendius’ pre-screening software will be “transformative” for patients and health care systems, CEO Rory Cameron told BioWorld in an interview.
Mission Bio Inc. released its Tapestri single-cell minimal residual disease (MRD) assay for acute myeloid leukemia (AML) on September 26, with the goal of enabling greater personalization of care for patients with blood cancers. The test can provide insights into the progression of AML and help identify targets for treatment in addition to identifying patients truly experiencing relapse as distinct from having pre-leukemic or precursor clones.
The U.S. FDA recently convened an advisory hearing to discuss whether three in vitro diagnostics should be reclassified from class III to class II, including tests for the pathogens responsible for Hepatitis B and tuberculosis. The panel agreed that all three of the test types should be reshuffled to the lower-risk class II category, suggesting that test developers now have an opportunity to jump into a market with lower-cost tests that won’t need expensive and drawn-out clinical studies to obtain the FDA’s seal of approval.
Proteomics International Pty Ltd has developed a new blood-based diagnostic test called the Promarkereso that identifies patients with esophageal adenocarcinoma as well as patients with a pre-malignant condition called Barrett’s esophagus that can arise from chronic acid reflux.
Artificial intelligence (AI) is an increasingly common matter of medical practice and thus not just another buzzword, and the U.K. National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has opened a program for evidence generation for the use of AI to contour external beam radiotherapy to the tumor of treatment.
Zig Therapeutics Inc. reported on new patented systems and methods for the remote diagnosis and treatment of a bacterial infection in individuals with chronic respiratory diseases experiencing acute respiratory exacerbations using automated color vision sputum analysis.
An artificial intelligence (AI) tool developed by Annalise.ai Pty Ltd. was able to improve radiologists’ accuracy in detecting abnormalities on non-contrast computed tomography brain (CTB) scans. According to a study published in European Radiology, the Annalise Enterprise CTB module improved radiologists' accuracy by 32% and reduced their overall reading time by 11%.
Aiming to provide additional utility and information to its continuous glucose monitors (CGMs), Dexcom Inc. is tying in the nutrition information provided by Rxfood Corp.’s app for customers in Canada. Clinics, hospitals, pharmacies, health plans, employers and others can make the app available to the beneficiaries and patients who use the Dexcom G6 or G7 systems, once the program is rolled out.
Researchers at Singapore’s Agency for Science Technology & Research Bioprocessing Technology Institute (also known as A*STAR BTI) saw publication of their patent application for a wearable electronic system for solid-state epidermal biomarkers (SEB) that enables in situ, continuous, multiplexed, wireless, and skin-integrated sensing of analytes such as cholesterol, lactate, and glucose.