A pivotal clinical trial for renal denervation to treat hypertension is underway on the heels of a pair of recent clinical trial results from Medtronic plc. The company had a phase III failure in this field in 2014, but is convinced that it has altered its approach sufficiently to succeed this time around. The first pivotal trial is in hypertension patients who are not on any medication; potential additional trials in the pivotal program remain under consideration.

Precipio Inc. has launched its pancreatic cancer liquid biopsy kit for pancreatic cancer. The kit is intended to enable a cost of only $100 per specimen, which would be just a fraction of the cost of other tests. That price point could prove reasonable enough to better enable routine monitoring for cancer patients by making it more economically feasible for patients.