Stryker announced it has acquired Molli Surgical and its miniature tissue marker for targeting breast cancer lesions during surgery.
Molli’s wire-free system relies on a magnetic, gold-plated, seed-like implant that is placed within the tumor. At 3.2 millimeters in size, the two companies describe it as the smallest of its type on the market, and that it is detectable through dense breasts and hematomas.
Short for magnetic occult lesion localization instrument, the Molli marker’s magnetic field is detected by a handheld wand, which provides surgeons with audiovisual feedback and three-dimensional guidance during breast-conserving procedures.
Stryker said the addition will complement its current breast cancer surgery portfolio, which includes fluorescence imaging for mapping the nearby lymphatic system as well as lighted retractor instruments. The financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
“This is a perfect, classic tuck-in for Stryker,” CEO Kevin Lobo said on the company’s second-quarter earnings call with investors this week. “This product—even though it's not a big revenue producer, at least for now—it is elegant. It is easy to use… We've watched all the other products in this space, and this is the one we've had our eye on.”
The acquisition comes shortly after the closing of its deal for Artelon earlier this month, which brought in an established catalog of soft-tissue fixation offerings for ligament and tendon reconstruction, used in feet and ankles as well as sports medicine procedures.
“We remain bullish about our deal pipeline, and we expect continued activity as we move into the back half of the year,” Lobo said, adding that Stryker expects to have enough capital to play with because of a large backlog, amid particularly strong demand among endoscopy and medical sales.
“Most of them are the tuck-in variety, and most of them are not very large, but you will see us continue to be active,” he said.
For the second quarter, the company posted organic net sales growth of 9.0% for a total of $5.42 billion, which accounts for currency exchanges and acquisition deal impacts year-over-year.
With net earnings growing 11.8% to $825 million, Stryker raised its financial forecasts for the remainder of 2024, predicting growth between 9.0% and 10.0%, up slightly from a previous range of 8.5% to 9.5%.
“We are really picking up the pace in international—particularly in countries like Japan, some of the emerging markets, India and even Europe,” Lobo said, specifically for the company’s Mako surgical robot placements. “International is where the U.S. was four or five years ago. That is a new tailwind.”
Stryker said it also expects to see that healthy robotic procedure volume continue—with its Mako robot and Triathlon implants recently passing the 1 million mark in total knee replacements.
Meanwhile, this week the company received an FDA clearance for its spine surgery guidance system—which provides auditory and sensory alerts to the surgeon when they approach preplanned boundaries with a high-speed drill during bone resection procedures.
The Q Guidance System also provides feedback during pedicle screw placements and can stop the driver automatically when it reaches the proper depth.
“Spine Guidance Software with Copilot is just the beginning of our development pipeline,” Robbie Robinson, president of Stryker’s Spine division, said in a statement.
The company said it is aiming for the first clinical cases to begin in September. A full commercial rollout is slated for later in the fall—alongside the planned launch of its Mako Spine robotic arm attachments scheduled for the fourth quarter, and Mako Shoulder debuting at the end of the year.