On April 20, 2020 Median Technologies (Paris:ALMDT), The Imaging Phenomics Company reported that it had received the disbursement of €15 million, corresponding to the first tranche of the loan granted by the European Investment Bank (EIB) (Press release, MEDIAN Technologies, APR 20, 2020, View Source [SID1234556436]). The loan agreement was signed on December 18, 2019.
Schedule your 30 min Free 1stOncology Demo!
Discover why more than 1,500 members use 1stOncology™ to excel in:
Early/Late Stage Pipeline Development - Target Scouting - Clinical Biomarkers - Indication Selection & Expansion - BD&L Contacts - Conference Reports - Combinatorial Drug Settings - Companion Diagnostics - Drug Repositioning - First-in-class Analysis - Competitive Analysis - Deals & Licensing
Schedule Your 30 min Free Demo!
The loan agreement allows the Company to borrow up to €35 million. The second and third tranches, in the amount of €10 million each, may be drawn at the discretion of Median Technologies, subject to the achievement of a set of operational and financial performance criteria agreed upon with the EIB.
The objective of this financing, granted by the EIB together with the European Commission, under the guarantee of the European Fund for Strategic Investment (so called "Juncker Plan), is to support research and innovation projects developed by companies with substantial growth potential. Median Technologies meets these criteria as its iBiopsy technology has the potential to impact the lives of hundreds of thousands of patients worldwide.
iBiopsy fundamentals
Median develops imaging tests based on the most advanced AI technologies. Using imaging biomarkers, iBiopsy will identify in an innovative manner the specific signatures of certain diseases for their early detection, the quantification of their severity and their monitoring. The non-invasive imaging tests that the company is developing will help pharmaceutical companies develop new treatment for cancer and NASH patients. They will also provide key information to help patients receive treatment that is adapted to their specific conditions.
Outlook and main elements of the iBiopsy investment program for 2020
The funding granted by the EIB will cover the iBiopsy investment program over several years. For 2020, the iBiopsy roadmap focuses on several priorities: clinical development plan, product roadmap, key clinical and technological partnerships supported by a strategic intellectual property policy.
Clinical development and product roadmap: the clinical development plan will help channel the product deployment strategy in various areas of high clinical utility, such as:
A test for the non-invasive assessment of hepatic fibrosis (NASH), a disease whose prevalence is significantly increasing worldwide, as well as tests to assess treatment response in patients,
A test to identify potential responding patients to immuno-oncology treatment to enable biopharmaceutical companies better target the efficacy of their treatment during the phases of clinical tests and match the right treatment with the right patients in clinical routine,
A test for the detection, characterization and prognosis of HCC.
An assessment of commercial strategies for the reimbursement of tests and regulatory strategies in particular with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will also be carried out.
Strategic partnerships: like the collaboration agreement with AP-HP announced on March 2, 2020, Median Technologies will continue its partnership strategy with healthcare institutions and biopharmaceutical companies on a global scale, to ensure access to the best clinical expertise and high-quality imaging data. These partnerships, some of which are already being discussed, will be announced upon their signature. The partnership strategy will also cover agreements with technology companies, to enable the roll out of the iBiopsy platform by targeted sectors: healthcare institutions for clinical routine and biopharmaceutical companies for clinical research and development.
Intellectual property protection strategy: Median continues to develop its differentiating assets with the implementation at the end of 2019 of a strategy to pursue several patent submissions on iBiopsy. The innovations developed in 2019 are already the subject of several patents pending in Europe, the United States, China and Japan.
"This first disbursement of the loan granted to Median in December 2019, before the coronavirus crisis, proves the continuous support of the European Investment Bank to the Medtech sector and the health system in general", said Ambroise Fayolle, Vice-President of the EIB. "To cope with the health crisis that hits all Europe, EIB has decided to increase the financing of the health sector to €5 billion which will enable innovative companies like Median – pioneer in AI and health – to become a leading European company"
"This initial €15 million disbursement from the EIB allows us to strengthen our financial visibility and considerably step up our investment plan for iBiopsy", said Fredrik Brag, CEO and co-founder of Median Technologies. "Our current effort to solidify the clinical development plan will drive the iBiopsy product roadmap right through to regulatory filing which we expect to take place in 2021", he added.
As of the date on which this first loan disbursement is received from the EIB, Median Technologies intends to provide quarterly updates on iBiopsy, to ensure regularly updated information on its development to the Company’s various audiences.