NEW HAVEN, Conn., April 18, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Specialty diagnostics company Precipio, Inc. (NASDAQ:PRPO), announced today it is in active licensing discussions with several
potential partners regarding IV-Cell, Precipio’s proprietary cytogenetics media.
External validations and evaluations are ongoing alongside commercial discussions to out-license the rights, which we expect to
be completed within the current quarter. All potential partners possess both the manufacturing and global distribution
capabilities, and are significant market players in the diagnostic reagents industry, with specific expertise in cytogenetics media
manufacturing and distribution.
Market Opportunity
The US market for cytogenetics reagents is estimated to exceed $100M annually; worldwide, the market is estimated at
approximately $250M.
The potential partners all possess a global footprint and because the field of cytogenetics reagents has seen little advancement
in the past 25 years, this presents an opportunity for breakthrough media like IV-Cell.
IV-Cell Key Advantages
Cytogenetics media is used to culture cells to mimic development of malignant cells in the body, and identify chromosomal
abnormalities that may be causing cancer. This process helps the diagnostician identify abnormalities within the patient’s cells,
in order to determine both the diagnosis (type) and prognosis (severity) of the disease.
IV-Cell provides two substantial improvements over current media used in the market.
First, it enables laboratory technicians to culture multiple cell lineages simultaneously, compared to
existing media requiring upfront selection of a single target cell lineage which, once made cannot be changed. If the
wrong cell lineage was selected, this could result in a mistaken diagnosis. Precipio’s internal data indicates that the potential
selection of the incorrect cell lineage (based on the clinical indication submitted) can occur in up to 30% of cases.
Using IV-Cell can provide the laboratory a more complete picture of the patient specimen, and can ultimately lead to a more
accurate diagnosis by reducing the chance that the wrong cell lineage has been selected.
The second improvement is the generation of higher resolution of the chromosomal bands (by approximately 20%), which can improve
the cytogeneticists’ ability to correctly identify abnormalities, also driving accuracy.
Other advantages include simpler and less expensive inventory management for laboratories, since with IV-Cell, laboratories can
use one media to cover all four cell lineages, rather than purchase and carry four different medias (one for each cell
lineage).
Precipio developed the cytogenetics media earlier in 2017 and has been using IV-Cell clinically in its laboratory for the past
year.
"The interest we’ve received in IV-Cell underscores the impact this product can make on a market largely void of material
advancements for 25 years,” said Ilan Danieli, President and Chief Executive Officer of Precipio. "Ultimately this goes directly to
our vision of reducing diagnostic errors and saving lives through multiple avenues, combining academic expertise and innovation to
deliver a more accurate diagnosis."
About Precipio
Precipio has built a platform designed to eradicate the problem of misdiagnosis by harnessing the intellect, expertise and
technology developed within academic institutions and delivering quality diagnostic information to physicians and their patients
worldwide. Through its collaborations with world-class academic institutions specializing in cancer research, diagnostics and
treatment such as the Yale School of Medicine and Harvard’s Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Precipio offers a new standard of
diagnostic accuracy enabling the highest level of patient care. For more information, please visit www.precipiodx.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements in this press release constitute “forward-looking statements,” within the meaning of federal securities laws,
including statements related to ICP technology, including financial projections related thereto and potential market opportunity,
plans and prospects and other statements containing the words “anticipate,” “intend,” “may,” “plan,” “predict,” “will,” “would,”
“could,” “should,” and similar expressions, constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of The Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The Company's actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking
statements as a result of various factors. Factors that could cause future results to materially differ from the recent results or
those projected in forward-looking statements include the known risks, uncertainties and other factors described in the Company’s
definitive proxy statement filed on May 12, 2017, the Company’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2017,
the Company’s prior filings and from time to time in the Company’s subsequent filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Any change in such factors, risks and uncertainties may cause the actual results, events and performance to differ materially from
those referred to in such statements. All information in this press release is as of the date of the release and the Company does
not undertake any duty to update this information, including any forward-looking statements, unless required by law.
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