A Medical Device Daily

Covidien Imaging Solutions (St. Louis) and BioSynthema (also St. Louis) reported the signing of agreements to make a nuclear medicine therapy for neuroendocrine cancer patients. Under the terms of an exclusive license agreement, BioSynthema will gain access to specific Covidien peptide technology. The license will enable BioSynthema to use this technology in conjunction with its own technology and proprietary clinical research to further develop a new targeted radionuclide therapy product. Under the terms of a separate agreement, Covidien will have exclusive marketing rights to the resulting cancer therapy technology.

“We are very pleased to be working with BioSynthema on this important technology,” said Steve Hanley, president of Covidien Imaging Solutions. “This project reflects Covidien’s commitment to the future of nuclear medicine and to the development of new and unique radiolabeled products.”

The new technology utilizes a radiolabeled peptide that targets specific somatostatin receptors on neuroendocrine cancer cells. If approved, this drug candidate will add to Covidien’s portfolio of nuclear medicine oncology agents, including OctreoScan (kit for the preparation of indium In-111 pentetreotide), a molecular imaging agent which is indicated for the scintigraphic detection and localization of primary and metastatic neuroendocrine tumors bearing somatostatin receptors. The safety and effectiveness of OctreoScan imaging agent in pediatric patients have not been established, and use in patients with impaired renal function should be carefully considered.

“The incidence of neuroendocrine tumors is approximately 20,000 new cases per year in the U.S. and Europe,” said Jack Erion, PhD, president/CEO of BioSynthema. “If approved, this technology would provide a new therapeutic drug for those patients who currently have very limited treatment options.”

Under the terms of the agreements, BioSynthema will develop and manufacture the product and Covidien will be responsible for worldwide marketing, sales and distribution. The companies plan to pursue marketing authorization in Europe and the U.S. initially.

In other agreements:

•Broadlane (Dallas) reported that Hill-Rom (Batesville, Indiana), was selected by Broadlane clients as the supplier of choice and earned a multi-year, single-vendor agreement under which Broadlane clients can access Hill-Rom therapy beds for rental and purchase.

“Hill-Rom met our client’s needs best from all aspects,” said Michael Berryhill, Broadlane’s executive VP of supply chain services. “Our clients had pre-committed their volume to the clinically acceptable supplier that met the other operational and financial requirements they required. In terms of clinical support, service requirements, and aggressive pricing, Hill-Rom simply provided the best overall package.”

Hill-Rom is a manufacturer and provider of medical technologies and related services for the healthcare industry, including patient support systems, non-invasive therapeutic products for a variety of acute and chronic medical conditions, medical equipment rentals, and workflow information technology solutions. Broadlane is a supply chain services company serving acute care hospitals, ambulatory care facilities and physician practices.

•Illumina (San Diego) said that it has agreed to process more than 6,500 samples for researchers of the Type 1 diabetes genetics consortium (T1DGC) via its FastTrack genotyping services. With financial support from the NIDDK, the T1DGC will attempt to identify genes that influence an individual’s risk for developing Type 1 diabetes.

“Illumina’s technology meets the University of Virginia’s needs in terms of data quality, call rates, and genomic coverage, and we think that provides us with the most potential for discovering variants linked to complex disease, like Type 1 diabetes,” said Stephen Rich, MD, director, center for public health genomics at the University of Virginia (Charlottesville).

To date, Illumina’s FastTrack genotyping services group has processed more than 300,000 samples and generated more than 18 billion genotypes, helping researchers around the world to identify genes linked to a number of complex diseases, including psychological disorders, asthma, and cancer.

Illumina makes life-science tools and integrated systems for the large-scale analysis of genetic variation and biological function.

•NeoStem (New York) has signed an agreement with Stem Cell Collect. Stem Cell Collect has purchased the right to open six adult stem cell collection facilities with an option to develop significantly more territories. According to the agreement, Stem Cell Collect is entitled to begin by expanding the NeoStem network throughout most of California and to launch the Colorado market.

NeoStem’s processes allow patients to store their own stem cells for long periods of time to ensure immediate access in times of critical medical need. These cells are considered “autologous” as they are used by the donor exclusively for personal use to ensure biocompatibility.

•Quidel (San Diego, California),a provider of rapid point-of-care (POC) diagnostic tests, reported that Adventist Health System (Nashville, Tennessee) has chosen it as its supplier for rapid point of care influenza test kits. The system’s clinical advisory committee voted unanimously to use the QuickVue Influenza kit throughout its entire system based on clinical and economical values.This partnership agreement will run until Sept. 30, 2009.

The Adventist system is the largest not-for-profit hospital system in the country serving more than four million patients. They serve 36 hospitals in 10 states as well as home healthcare and long-term care facilities.