The U.S. FDA’s advisory hearing on multi-cancer detection (MCD) tests suggests that the premarket requirements for these tests will be rigorous, if only because the agency stated at the outset of the hearing that it sees these tests as class III devices. However, the advisory committee also suggested that a registry be established to track outcomes for these tests, a requirement that is likely to prove expensive and time-consuming to fulfill.
The U.S. FDA opted not to pursue one form of medical device harmonization via the Global Harmonization Working Party (GHWP), as it reported it will withdraw from the organization.
Philips Respironics Inc.’s nightmares with its Dreamstation continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) line of products continued with a fresh warning from the U.S. FDA of reports involving thermal issues with a newer iteration of the machine, some of which cited patient injuries.
Brainspec Inc. received U.S. FDA 510(k) clearance for use of its artificial intelligence platform, Brainspec Core, in noninvasive measurement of brain chemistry using magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS).
“The FDA approval to begin the Bivacor Total Artificial Heart EFS is a critical milestone for Bivacor and is another validation of the remarkable work and accomplishments of the entire Bivacor team. This device will provide a unique approach to help patients currently with limited clinical options,” said William Cohn, heart surgeon at the Texas Heart Institute and Bivacor chief medical officer.
Inflammatix Inc. received U.S. FDA breakthrough device designation for its Triverity acute infection and sepsis test system, which produces three readouts that could help emergency physicians quickly determine the proper course of treatment.
Awak Technologies Pte Ltd. gained the U.S. FDA’s breakthrough designation for an artificial intelligence (AI)-based kidney disease progression prediction (KDDP) model on Nov. 27, following its $20 million fundraising that marked one of Singapore’s largest med-tech financings in 2023.
Smith+Nephew plc struck a deal to acquire Cartiheal Ltd. for $180 million at closing and $150 million in contingent payments, seven months after Bioventus Inc. backed out of its agreement to buy the developer of the Agili-C cartilage regeneration platform for $450 million.
The U.S. Federal Trade Commission announced Nov. 21 that it has obtained a civil monetary penalty in the amount of $700,000 from CRI Genetics LLC, an enforcement action taken under the agency’s policy for biometrics information.
The U.S. Federal Trade Commission is clearly a more activist agency of late, although much of that activism has been around mergers and acquisitions. The latest FTC move, however, deals with investigative authorities that will be applied toward artificial intelligence (AI), which Katie Bond of Keller & Heckerman LLP said will give the agency considerable powers of discovery regardless of the merits of the enforcement action.