Full Press Release Details
Subsidiary Lucid Diagnostics Launches LucidDx Labs to Accommodate EsoGuard Testing Growth
wholly owned Lucid subsidiary now performing EsoGuard Esophageal DNA Test in its own new state-of-the-art CLIA-certified,
CAP-accredited clinical laboratory
YORK, March 3, 2022 - (BUSINESS WIRE) - Lucid Diagnostics Inc. (Nasdaq: LUCD) ("Lucid") a commercial-stage,
cancer prevention medical diagnostics company, and majority-owned subsidiary of PAVmed Inc. (Nasdaq: PAVM, PAVMZ) ("PAVmed"),
today announced that a new, wholly owned subsidiary of Lucid, LucidDx Labs Inc. ("LucidDx Labs") has acquired from ResearchDx,
Inc. ("RDx"), a CLIA-certified, CAP-accredited clinical laboratory operator located in Irvine, CA, certain licenses and other
related assets necessary for LucidDx Labs to operate its own new CLIA-certified, CAP-accredited clinical laboratory located in Lake Forest,
CA (the "Laboratory"). RDx had performed Lucid's EsoGuard Esophageal DNA Test ("EsoGuard")
since its transfer from a university research laboratory and its commercial launch as a Laboratory Developed Test ("LDT").
LucidDx Labs has begun performing EsoGuard testing at the Laboratory, including DNA extraction and bisulfite-converted next-generation
sequencing ("NGS"), on surface esophageal cells collected using Lucid's EsoCheck Esophageal Cell Collection
Device ("EsoCheck") from at-risk patients with Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease ("GERD"), also known as chronic
heartburn or acid reflux.
critical milestone is the culmination of a lot of highly collaborative work over the past few months by our team and our outstanding
partners at ResearchDx," said Lishan Aklog, M.D., Lucid's Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. "Having our own CLIA/CAP
laboratory to perform EsoGuard testing will markedly streamline and simplify numerous important processes, including EsoGuard billing
and collections. More fundamentally, it provides us with a strong, long-term, scalable infrastructure to accommodate accelerating growth
in testing volume from our expanding EsoGuard commercialization activities."
Labs and RDx also entered into a management services agreement pursuant to which RDx will continue to provide personnel and services
to support the performance of EsoGuard at the Laboratory. Concurrently, LucidDx Labs entered into an agreement to lease the building
in Lake Forest, CA where the Laboratory operates from an affiliate of RDx. The Laboratory has acquired, installed, and qualified all
the necessary technology and equipment to perform the EsoGuard assay, completed the necessary assay validations to process clinical samples
as an LDT, completed a College of American Pathologists ("CAP") audit, and begun performing EsoGuard testing at the new facility.
Protocols to initiate formal transfer of the Clinical Laboratory Information Act ("CLIA") certificate as well as relevant
state licenses have commenced. Further details on this acquisition and the launch of the laboratory can be found in a Current Report
filed today with the Securities and Exchange Commission on Form 8-K.
EsoGuard and EsoCheck
of patients with GERD are at risk of developing esophageal precancer and a highly lethal form of esophageal cancer ("EAC").
Over 80% of EAC patients die within five years of diagnosis, making it the second most lethal cancer in the U.S. The mortality rate is
high even in those diagnosed with early stage EAC. The U.S. incidence of EAC has increased 500% over the past four decades, while the
incidences of other common cancers have declined or remained flat. In nearly all cases, EAC silently progresses until it manifests itself
with new symptoms of advanced disease. All EAC is believed to arise from esophageal precancer, which occurs in approximately 5% to 15%
of at-risk GERD patients. Early esophageal precancer can be monitored for progression to late esophageal precancer which can be cured
with endoscopic esophageal ablation, reliably halting progression to cancer.
precancer screening is already recommended by clinical practice guidelines in millions of GERD patients with multiple risk factors, including
age over 50 years, male gender, White race, obesity, smoking history, and a family history of esophageal precancer or cancer. Unfortunately,
fewer than 10% of those recommended for screening undergo traditional invasive endoscopic screening. The profound tragedy of an EAC diagnosis
is that likely death could have been prevented if the at-risk GERD patient had been screened and then undergone surveillance and curative
only missing element for a viable esophageal cancer prevention program has been the lack of a widespread screening tool that can detect
esophageal precancer. Lucid believes EsoGuard and EsoCheck are the missing element and constitute the first and only commercially available
test capable of serving as a widespread screening tool to prevent esophageal cancer deaths through the early detection of esophageal
precancer in at-risk GERD patients.
is a bisulfite-converted NGS DNA assay performed on surface esophageal cells collected with EsoCheck which quantifies methylation at
31 sites on two genes, Vimentin (VIM) and Cyclin A1 (CCNA1). The assay was evaluated in a 408-patient, multicenter, case-control study
published in Science Translational Medicine and showed greater than 90% sensitivity and specificity at detecting esophageal precancer
is an FDA 510(k) and CE Mark cleared noninvasive swallowable balloon capsule catheter device capable of sampling surface esophageal cells
in a less than five-minute office procedure. It consists of a vitamin pill-sized rigid plastic capsule tethered to a thin silicone catheter
from which a soft silicone balloon with textured ridges emerges to gently swab surface esophageal cells. When vacuum suction is applied,
the balloon and sampled cells are pulled into the capsule, protecting them from contamination and dilution by cells outside of the targeted
region during device withdrawal. Lucid believes this proprietary Collect+Protect technology makes EsoCheck the only noninvasive
esophageal cell collection device capable of such anatomically targeted and protected sampling. The sample is sent by overnight express
mail to Lucid's third-party CLIA-certified laboratory partner for EsoGuard testing.
Diagnostics Inc. (Nasdaq: LUCD) is a commercial-stage, cancer prevention medical diagnostics company, and subsidiary of PAVmed Inc. (Nasdaq:
PAVM). Lucid is focused on the millions of patients with gastroesophageal disease (GERD), also known as chronic heartburn, who are at
risk of developing esophageal precancer and cancer. Lucid's EsoGuard Esophageal DNA Test, performed on samples
collected in a brief, noninvasive office procedure with its EsoCheck Esophageal Cell Collection Device, is the first
and only commercially available diagnostic test capable of serving as a widespread screening tool to prevent cancer and cancer deaths
through early detection of esophageal precancer in at-risk GERD patients. EsoGuard is commercialized in the U.S. as a Laboratory Developed
Test (LDT). EsoCheck is commercialized in the U.S. as a 510(k)-cleared esophageal cell collection device. EsoGuard, used with EsoCheck,
was granted FDA Breakthrough Device designation and is the subject of two large, actively enrolling, international multicenter clinical
trials to support FDA PMA approval. Lucid is building nationwide direct sales and marketing team targeting primary care physicians, gastroenterologists,
and consumers, as well as a network of Lucid Test Centers where at-risk GERD patients can undergo the EsoCheck procedure for EsoGuard
press release includes forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are any statements that are not historical facts. Such
forward-looking statements, which are based upon the current beliefs and expectations of Lucid's management, are subject to risks
and uncertainties, which could cause actual results to differ from the forward-looking statements. Risks and uncertainties that may cause
such differences include, among other things, volatility in the price of Lucid's common stock; general economic and market conditions;
the uncertainties inherent in research and development, including the cost and time required to advance Lucid's products to regulatory
submission; whether regulatory authorities will be satisfied with the design of and results from Lucid's clinical and preclinical
studies; whether and when Lucid's products are cleared by regulatory authorities; market acceptance of Lucid's products once
cleared and commercialized; Lucid's ability to raise additional funding as needed; and other competitive developments. In addition,
Lucid has been monitoring the COVID-19 pandemic and the pandemic's impact on Lucid's businesses. Lucid expects the significance
of the COVID-19 pandemic, including the extent of its effect on its financial and operational results, to be dictated by, among other
things, the success of efforts to contain the pandemic and the impact of such efforts on Lucid's businesses. These factors are
difficult or impossible to predict accurately and many of them are beyond Lucid's control. In addition, new risks and uncertainties
may arise from time to time and are difficult to predict. For a further list and description of these and other important risks and uncertainties
that may affect Lucid's future operations, see Lucid's Registration Statement No. 333-259721 filed with the Securities and
Exchange Commission. Lucid disclaims any intention or obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement to reflect
any change in its expectations or in events, conditions, or circumstances on which those expectations may be based, or that may affect
the likelihood that actual results will differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements.