Presentations at the Digestive Disease Week 2023 conference highlighted the strong performance of non-invasive tests for early-stage colorectal cancer. Both Guardant Health Inc. and Exact Sciences Corp. aim to increase acceptance of their tests for CRC to drive higher screening rates, as the preparation and invasive nature of colonoscopy continue to depress participation, even as rates of CRC are rising sharply among younger adults.
An increasing number of European med-tech companies are first seeking regulatory approval from the U.S. FDA because of the growing backlog and frustrations with requirements under the new regulatory framework of the EU Medical Device Regulation (MDR), which has been described as “not working.”
The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) is proposing to lower the age of onset of regular breast cancer screening to 40 years, a massive jump of 10 years over the current recommended age of 50 years. While this is just a draft proposal, analysts who track the medical device industry say that medical imaging manufacturers, such as Marlborough, Mass.-based Hologic Inc., could see a significant uptick in demand for their systems, a much-needed boost as the drop in demand incurred by the COVID-19 pandemic comes to an end.
The regulatory record for successful replacements of the human meniscus is thin, but the latest attempt came up short as a U.S. FDA advisory committee voted 6-2 that the benefits of the Nusurface device by Active Implants LLC did not present an acceptable benefit-risk ratio. The device is commercially available in both the European Union and in Israel, however, suggesting that Memphis, Tenn.-based Active will not give up on the massive U.S. market, which offers a patient population that will undergo a tsunami of total knee replacements in the decades ahead unless a solution for the epidemic of cartilage degeneration can be found.
Citing significant concerns of bacterial contamination, the FDA urged consumers and health care providers to stop using specific lots of SD Biosensor Inc.’s Pilot COVID-19 At-Home Tests, which were distributed by Roche Diagnostics Systems Inc. The agency warned that direct contact with the contaminated liquid solution could pose safety issues as well as impair the test’s performance.
Insulet Corp. once again broke records with a nearly 50% increase in Omnipod revenues in U.S. in the first quarter and a 32% increase in revenue from the tubeless insulin delivery device worldwide. In an unusual move following such positive quarterly results, the company simultaneously announced a major shake-up in the leadership team, with multiple senior members moving to new positions starting July 1. The latest round of musical chairs comes almost exactly a year after the last at the Insulet, when Founder, President and CEO Shacey Petrovic stepped down and Jim Hollingshead assumed the top spot.
Even though COVID-19 is transitioning from pandemic to endemic across the world, it will remain first in mind as U.S. lawmakers look to reauthorize the Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness Act (PAHPA) this year to ensure the country is better prepared for future threats. With a Sept. 30 deadline for reauthorizing PAHPA, the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee has its work cut out for it. But it won’t be starting from scratch. In opening a May 4 hearing on the reauthorization, HELP Chair Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) said the committee would build on the efforts started last year under then-Chair Patty Murray (D-Wash.) and now-retired Ranking Member Richard Burr (R-N.C.).
With the COVID-19 public health emergency ending in the U.S. next week, Congress is looking to use the lessons learned from the pandemic to draft a new iteration of the Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness Act to ensure the country is better prepared for the next pandemic.
The FDA gave the greenlight to Route 92 Medical Inc. for its Freeclimb 70 reperfusion system in the treatment of ischemic stroke. The 510(k) clearance includes a Freeclimb 70 aspiration catheter, as well as a Tenzing 7 delivery catheter.
In a draft guidance released May 2, the U.S. FDA provided recommendations for sponsors, investigators and other stakeholders for implementation of decentralized clinical trials (DCTs) to advance research in medical devices, drugs and biologics. This week’s announcement responds to the Food and Drug Omnibus Reform Act, signed into law late last year, which required the agency to “issue or revise draft guidance that includes recommendations to clarify and advance the use of decentralized clinical studies to support the development of drugs and devices.”
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