A Diagnostics & Imaging Week

Predictive medicine company PreMD (Toronto) said that it has begun an action in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice in Toronto against Dr. Abulkalam Shamsuddin, Stuart Brazier and Med-11 AG in connection with Shamsuddin's grant of an exclusive license to PreMD in 1998. The action responds to a filing by Shamsuddin.

PreMD said it has been advised that Shamsuddin has transferred his interest in the technology to Med-11 and that Shamsuddin has also purported to transfer the license agreement to Med-11 without PreMD's consent.

It said that Shamsuddin and Med-11 "have made unsubstantiated allegations that PreMD is in breach of certain terms of the agreement, all of which are as yet unproven and are denied by PreMD."

PreMD said that it believes it is in compliance with all of its obligations under the license agreement, and that any purported termination of the agreement is illegal.

This license relates to intellectual property involving part of PreMD's cancer products, which include ColorectAlert, LungAlert and a breast cancer test.

PreMD seeks relief, including an injunction preventing what it calls "unlawful termination" of the license agreement by Shamsuddin, Brazier and Med-11; declaration that PreMD has not breached the agreement; declaration that any assignment by Shamsuddin to Med-11 of the agreement, an amendment to the patents referred to in the license agreement is void; a declaration that Shamsuddin has breached the agreement; and damages for breach of contract and breach of duty in the amount of C$2 million.

Brent Norton, president/CEO of PreMD, said, "Over the past many years, we have enjoyed what we believed was a good relationship with Dr. Shamsuddin. He has sponsored presentations on our behalf and approved of and supported our work."

Norton said that it was pursuing court action "in light of what we believe is the illegal assignment of the license agreement to Med-11, the unfounded claims that PreMD has materially breached the license agreement and the threats to terminate the license agreement."

PreMD develops rapid, non-invasive tests for the early detection of life-threatening diseases. Its cardiovascular products are branded as PREVU(x) Skin Sterol Test. Its cancer tests include ColorectAlert, LungAlert and a breast cancer test.