Not content to merely unveil an entirely new subsidiary dedicated to developing and distributing digital health technology for cancer care, PAVmed has gone double or nothing by simultaneously lining up the offshoot’s first acquisition.
First, the new company: The New York City-based devicemaker’s digital-health-centric subsidiary is named Veris Health and will be backed by advances from PAVmed until Veris begins raising its own capital.
The launch marks PAVmed’s attempt to cash in on the ongoing “dramatically increased utilization of telemedicine, remote patient monitoring and artificial intelligence,” according to Lishan Aklog, PAVmed’s chairman and CEO.
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As for Veris’ business, its portfolio so far is made up entirely of tools developed by the newly acquired Oncodisc, which was founded in 2018 to develop AI-powered software and connected devices to improve remote care options for cancer and chronic disease patients.
So far, Oncodisc has created a software platform to manage remote monitoring devices and provide data analytics. It is also developing what promises to be the first-ever “smart” implantable vascular access port.
Oncodisc’s take on the port upgrades the typical implant—placed under the skin and connected to a vein for blood draws, hemodialysis, chemotherapy delivery and more—with the addition of sensors and wireless capabilities to automatically transmit data gathered by the device to the patient’s smartphone and the Oncodisc remote monitoring system.
Though the technologies were initially designed for use in cancer care management, Aklog noted that they could potentially be expanded into other treatment areas, such as renal failure and heart failure.
Veris is aiming to receive FDA 510(k) clearance of the port in the second half of 2022, around the same time that it will begin rolling out the care management platform.
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The company expects to derive the majority of its revenues from recurring hospital and cancer clinic subscriptions to the platform as well as from their purchases of the vascular access port. Veris is also counting on oncology-focused biotechs buying its technologies to provide continuous analytics in clinical trials of immunotherapy and chemotherapy treatments.
To acquire all outstanding shares of Oncodisc, all of its intellectual property and both its ardware and software assets, the PAVmed spinout offered Oncodisc a 19.6% equity interest in Veris. It also put down $155,250 in cash to pay off two remaining Oncodisc convertible notes.
Veris will be led by PAVmed’s management until Veris’ board of directors names a subsidiary-specific team. In the meantime, James Mitchell, M.D., Oncodisc’s CEO and co-founder, will become Veris' chief medical officer.
“Although we have solid published data demonstrating that remote monitoring of cancer patients reduces hospital utilization, improves outcomes including survival and is well-reimbursed, current consumer-oriented tools have not succeeded due to limited data points and poor patient adherence,” Mitchell said.