PERTH, Australia – After raising AU$20 million (US$14.62 million) in a series A round, serial entrepreneur Paul Hopper is unveiling his newest venture, Radiopharm Theranostics Ltd., which is developing a platform of radiopharmaceutical and nuclear medicine products for both diagnostic and therapeutic uses.

A multicenter study has found that a multiplex diagnostic panel developed by Opgen Inc. can reduce the use of inappropriate antibiotic therapy by 45.1%. Opgen’s Unyvero Hospitalized Pneumonia (HPN) panel uses PCR technology that can detect 21 pathogens and 17 antibiotic resistance markers in less than five hours. During the European Respiratory Society conference, Rockville, Md.-based Opgen presented data showing that combined with antibiotic stewardship, its HPN panel decreased time on inappropriate antibiotic therapy in hospitalized patients with pneumonia at risk for Gram-negative rods.

Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. has grabbed a slice of the non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) market, becoming the first company to gain FDA approval for an oral drug targeted against a rare form of the disease.

Three is the magic number for Finnish companies Abacus Diagnostica Oy, Kaivogen Oy and Labrox Oy as they link up to develop a new diagnostic solution combining antibody and PCR testing on a single device. The three Turku, Finland-based companies said they are joining forces to form a new diagnostics powerhouse, harnessing their own unique expertise. Abacus Diagnostica develops molecular testing and rapid PCR tests while Kaivogen specializes in immunoassays and antibody tests and Labrox on laboratory instruments. All companies have previously collaborated on R&D projects.

Startup company Medial Earlysign Ltd. and Roche Diagnostics International Ltd. are teaming up to bring to market artificial intelligence (AI) solutions for early detection of cancer. Founded in 2013, Tel Aviv-based Medial Earlysign uses machine learning tools to flag patients with a high probability of developing specific illnesses. The partnership with Roche will initially focus on gastric cancer.

The Tokyo University of Science (TUS) has developed a self-powered diaper biosensor that can monitor urine sugar levels, which could be a boon for both diabetic patients and their caregivers. Caregivers at nursing homes currently open patients’ diapers every few hours to check for urination, thus increasing the caregivers’ workload. The psychological impact on the patient is also increased, for example when their sleep is disturbed.

Savicell Diagnostics Ltd. has reported high accuracy results from a study validating its liquid biopsy platform Immunobiopsy. Haifa, Israel-based Savicell said the platform achieved high accuracy identifying lung cancer across stages I to IV. In a cohort of 245 participants, the Immunobiopsy test achieved 97% sensitivity and 97% specificity among patients with lung cancer.

LONDON – Oxford Biodynamics plc won a $910,000 grant to help validate real-world use of its epigenetics test for identifying patients who will respond to treatment with checkpoint inhibitor drugs. The award was made as part of the Beau Biden Cancer Moonshot.