Innovative medical device company Optiscan Imaging (ASX: OIL) doubled revenues and tabled its first significant quarterly cash profit from sales this year after a news-filled September quarter.
Solid buying support out of the USA and Europe saw the company bring in $670,000 in the September quarter from sales associated with its range of unique imaging devices that are able to diagnose cancer simply by scanning the skin or internal effected area without the need for painful biopsies.
The September quarter result is more than double the sales achieved in the June quarter of $287,000.
Whilst the cash profit from the sale of products last quarter was a modest $10,000, this quarter’s solid sales increase saw that number hike to $233,000, representing Optiscan’s first significant cash gross profit for the year.
The new sales numbers come on the back of a news filled September quarter for Optiscan.
Notably, the company signed an MOU with the University of Minnesota College of Veterinary Medicine, which it says proves healthcare professionals are starting to take notice of its technology, particularly in the companion animal market segment.
Other milestones for the September quarter include the sale of its ViewnVivo life sciences technology to a large Chinese university - which suggests its efforts to penetrate the lucrative Asian markets are producing some green shoots.
Since signing a “know-how” agreement with the Mayo Clinic in mid-2024, the company has been working with the prestigious US-based hospital group to define and conceptualise new confocal probe designs aimed at compatibility and integration with soft tissue surgical robotic platforms and surgical workflows.
I am immensely proud of the development milestones delivered by Optiscan over its September 2024 quarter. Thanks to their efforts, the number of clinical studies testing the effectiveness of our medical technology was expanded, and the Company’s R&D program was advanced. Progress on the latter front means we are now at the point where some new additions to our existing product suite could soon be revealed, including a minimum viable product (MVP) of Optiscan’s telepathology cloud-based streaming platform.
Optiscan’s CEO and Managing Director, Dr. Camile Farah
Meanwhile, steady progress has been made towards delivery of Optiscan’s InVue investigational systems to clinical study sites with finalised sterilisation validation expected by the end of Q2 FY25. The company has received ethical clearance from Royal Melbourne Hospital Human Research Ethics Committee for a breast cancer study utilising the recently unveiled InVue™ precision surgery imaging platform.
The Royal Melbourne Hospital breast study and its first patient recruitment, which kicks off in Q3 FY25, is expected to provide early data and insight ahead of more extensive studies planned for commencement with the Mayo Clinic in Q4 FY25, subject to a US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) review and approval.
In another important Q1 FY25 development, the company also ramped up work on its third clinical device designed specifically for diagnostic pathology use and as a digital replacement for the frozen section biopsy, opening up other commercial markets for Optiscan’s platform technology. Final enhancements are being incorporated into the device before its planned unveiling in Q3 FY25.
Management said it is also significantly closer to completing a clinical flexible “endomicroscope” aimed at gastroenterology that will be integrated with Optiscan’s current scanning technology. The company believes the assembly and construction of the clinical prototype marks a significant milestone in the CRC-P project granted to the Company in FY24.
In China, the company’s participation in Austrade’s “From GBA to China” tour in Hong Kong and Shenzhen has led to some new potential opportunities in the region.
Optiscan’s September quarterly results are telling in that it looks to be hitting its straps now with the economies of scale that come with increased sales leading to a product margin that looks quite healthy for the first time this year.
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