PERTH, Australia –Digital diagnostics company Ellume Ltd. announced a US$231.8 million agreement with the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD), in coordination with the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), to accelerate domestic U.S. production of its COVID-19 home tests. The agreement includes funding to support the establishment of Ellume’s U.S.-based manufacturing facility and the delivery of 8.5 million COVID-19 home tests that will be distributed across the U.S.

LONDON – The U.K. National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has published new advice on how and when artificial intelligence (AI) could be applied to the interpretation of mammograms and chest computer tomography images, in a move that is intended to set the ground rules for the uptake of these technologies. In population breast screening, NICE looked at how five AI systems could be used to pick out mammography images that need further assessment, supporting qualified radiologists in their interpretation.

Swift Biosciences Inc. released an S gene panel for SARS-CoV-2 that covers 100% of the gene even with minimal viral titers. The S gene controls the spike protein, which enables the virus to bind to cells and affects transmissibility, and has accumulated multiple mutations in the concerning variants recently discovered in the U.K., South Africa, Brazil, Denmark and the U.S. The panel is expected to enable rapid scaling of surveillance efforts of the new strains and can be run by any lab using the Illumina system.

Hologic Inc. kicked off its fiscal year 2021 with gusto, reporting revenue of $1.61 billion – up 89.3% year over year, or 86.5% on a constant currency basis. Worldwide sales of molecular diagnostics exceeded expectations, jumping 457.6% to $995.3 million as the company ramped up production to meet growing demand for its two SARS-CoV-2 assays that run on the fully automated Panther and Panther Fusion systems.

The SARS-CoV-2 virus has now had ample time to mutate, as reports of the proliferation of multiple variants make clear, and the U.S. FDA’s Tim Stenzel said the agency is now focused on three variants, including one recently reported from Israel. Stenzel said on the latest COVID-19 testing town hall that one of the key concerns regarding existing authorized tests is the potential for loss of sensitivity, a problem the agency hopes to overcome without the use of live virus.

A Swiss diagnostics company is looking to tap into China’s vast patient pool to validate its diagnostic test for prostate cancer. Schlieren-based Proteomedix AG inked a partnership with Zhengzhou University Henan Cancer Hospital in China to validate its Proclarix diagnostics test in the local population.

Abbott Laboratories reported 2020 fourth-quarter revenue up 29% year over year to $10.7 billion, outpacing the consensus estimate of $764 million. The positive growth was largely fueled by sales in diagnostics, which surged 111% to $4.35 billion, from $2.10 billion in the prior year period. Net earnings for the period totaled $2.16 billion, or $1.20 per share, up from $1.5 billion, or $.59 per share a year ago. Adjusted earnings per share (EPS) was $1.45, ahead of the Street target of $1.35.

Driving to a laboratory for blood testing may soon be a thing of the past. Babson Diagnostics Inc. just completed a pivotal study of its new system for collecting and analyzing blood from a finger prick at a pharmacy counter. The results indicate that the microsample system provides comparable results to phlebotomist-drawn venipuncture blood samples.

The implementation date for the European Union’s In Vitro Diagnostic Regulation (IVDR) is a mere 16 months away, although there is widespread interest in a delayed implementation date. Nonetheless, Warren Jameson, principal regulatory consultant for North American Science Associates (NAMSA) of Toledo, Ohio, urged test makers to conduct a gap analysis of the conformity of their currently marketed tests to the new regulations because a large percentage of the underlying dossiers would not pass muster under the terms of the new regulatory regime.