IPO
Israeli GI company Motus announced plans to IPO, anticipating that they will raise $28.8 million to support commercialization of their single-use Pure-Vu device. The Pure-Vu connects to standard colonoscopes to irrigate poorly-prepped colons during colonoscopy. In addition to seeking reimbursement for the system, the company plans to seek an additional indication that will enable them to “actively promote minimal prep capabilities directly to patients.” Motus plans to conduct a clinical trial in 2018 that should enable this expanded labeling in 2019.
In their filing, Motus said that there are 15 million colonoscopies are performed in the U.S. each year. Between 23% and 45% of these patients present for the procedure with poorly prepped colons, which can result in compromised diagnostic accuracy or the need to repeat the test. Additionally, the company says that approximately 57% of patients state that bowel preparation is the number one deterrent for the procedure, which highlights the appeal of a minimal-prep routine in getting patients to comply with screening recommendations.
A number of companies are working to make bowel imaging less invasive and disruptive to patients. Among those technologies are PillCam, which was acquired by Covidien (now Medtronic) via the $860 million Given Imaging transaction in 2013. Check-Cap describes themselves as the first preparation-free capsule-based system for colon cancer screening. And among non-invasive tests is Exact Sciences‘ home-based DNA test Cologuard, which just reported 168% revenue growth (and a total of ) in 2017 compared to 2016.
Posted: January 11, 2018
