Polarean Imaging (POLX ) announced that it has received an additional research unit order for one of its newest Xenon Polariser systems from McMaster University in Ontario, Canada.
The medical‑imaging technology company's newest unit, ‘version 9820’, will supplement the University’s existing hyperpolarisation 129Xe MRI research programme which is currently using a prior Polarean model known, 'version 9800'.
The system will be installed in St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton, a member of the St. Joseph’s Health System which is also affiliated with McMaster University.
St. Joseph’s holds the Firestone Institute for Respiratory Health, an internationally regarded hospital-based centre-of-excellence for adult pulmonary research and patient care.
Richard Hullihen, CEO of Polarean, said: “We are excited that this distinguished Canadian academic and research health centre is extending its utilisation of our 129Xe MRI technology.
He added: “This new addition to the University’s hyperpolarised 129Xe MRI research programme will help to support its increasing volume of clinical studies, from both academia and drug industry collaborators. We are pleased to support these researchers’ use of our platform as they continue their efforts to advance pulmonary patient care.”
Polarean Imaging and its wholly owned subsidiary, Polarean, are investigational drug-device combination companies operating in the high-resolution medical imaging research space.
The company is focused on developing equipment that enables existing MRI systems to achieve an improved level of pulmonary function imaging and specialises in the use of hyperpolarised Xenon gas (129Xe) as an imaging agent to visualise ventilation.
Compared to air that is typically within the lung, hyperpolarized xenon gas enhances the MRI signal by a factor of 100,000, making lung structure and regional ventilation more visible.
The process entails getting the patient to inhale a small quantity of the xenon gas and then undergoing an MRI scan which is typically completed within a 10-20 second breath hold.
Polarean said this ‘significantly higher functional resolution’ provided by this type of MRI ‘is so important to detecting early disease and subtle changes in the progression of disease.’
129Xe is being studied for visualisation of gas exchange regionally in the smallest airways of the lungs, across the alveolar tissue membrane, and into the pulmonary bloodstream.
Back in October 2020, the Company submitted a New Drug Application (“NDA”) to the US FDA for hyperpolarised 129Xe used to evaluate pulmonary function and to visualise the lung using MRI. The Group received a complete response letter last year on 5 October 2021.
Polarean said it is operating in an area of significant unmet medical need. The Company said it believes its technology provides a novel investigational diagnostic approach to offer ‘a non-invasive and radiation-free functional imaging platform.’ To put this into context, the annual economic burden of pulmonary disease in the US is estimated to be over $150 billion.
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