A Medical Device Daily

Dialysis Corporation of America (DCA; Linthicum, Maryland) reported that it has amended its secured revolving credit facility with KeyBank National Association to provide for up to $25 million in financing.

The three-year agreement provides for both base rate and LIBOR loans with interest rates to be based, respectively, upon either the bank's base rate or the London InterBank Offered Rate (LIBOR), plus an applicable margin.

DCA President/CEO Stephen Everett said, "As we go down the road of building our company through denovo development and select acquisitions, a concrete credit facility becomes critical. While we intend to further expand the credit line as opportunities warrant, we believe that we are in ideal shape to accomplish our goals for at least the next 12 to 18 months."

The company said it plans to use its new credit facility to support its continued rapid growth and for general business purposes.

DCA owns and operates freestanding kidney hemodialysis centers located in Georgia, Maryland, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina and Virginia, and provides in-hospital dialysis services on a contract basis to certain hospitals located in the those states.

CryoPen (Corpus Christi, Texas) has received $2 million in state funds to continue work on the development of a device to that freezes unwanted or harmful tissue.

The private company has developed a pen-like device that can kill tissue such as warts, keloids and skin tags without the storage and handling of hazardous liquids and gases, such as liquid nitrogen, carbon dioxide or nitrous oxide.

The system consists of hand-held freeze modules, a refrigeration unit and reusable tips. It is designed to remove tissue by the application of extreme cold temperature.

The funds come from the Texas Emerging Technology Fund, a $200 million program started in 2005 to invest in tomorrow's technology developed in the state. The program has allocated $115 million to Texas companies and universities.

Gov. Rick Perry reported the allocation Monday, saying the CryoPen device is unlike anything seen in the past decade and that it could bolster Texans' health, the state's healthcare business and economic diversity.

Because of its safety and ease of use, Perry said in a release that the device makes cryosurgery, or the freezing of tissue, more easily available to primary care physicians, especially those in small communities, eliminating the need for patients' travel to larger towns for medical care.

CryoPen began selling its $8,000 machine in April 2006 and sold more than 50 units regionally.

The company is implementing a national rollout, according to the governor's office.

In other financings news, Compugen (Tel Aviv, Israel) reported that it has no intention of issuing equity at the company's current market value. This statement was made in response to questions from shareholders and others.

"We have made no announcements that would account for the substantial decline in the price of our shares during the past few days," said Chairman Martin Gerstel. "However, in discussions with shareholders and others, a great deal of concern has been raised that the company's financial situation would require it to seek additional capital during the next few months regardless of market conditions or the price of its shares."

Gerstel said this notion is incorrect and that the company has cash on hand and marketable securities, that he estimated would be sufficient to fund its currently planned operations "well into 2010."

Compugen is a drug and diagnostic product discovery company.