Artrya Ltd (ASX:AYA) has inked its first US clinical partnership with Alabama-based Huntsville Heart Center Inc.
Together with its new partner, Artrya will embark on its first retrospective clinical study in the States.
Huntsville is considered a national leader in coronary computed tomography angiography (CCTA) — a heart imaging test that helps determine if plaque buildup has narrowed a patient’s coronary arteries.
The centre treats more than 80,000 cardiac patients each year.
Validating tech for commercial pathways
Under an initial agreement, both Huntsville and Artyra will compare patient cardiac CT scans read by experts to those read by artificial intelligence (AI)-based technology.
It marks a major step into the US market, which accounts for 42% of the global healthcare space.
Artrya USA co-CEOs Jory Tremblay and Ted Schwab said: “This is the company’s first clinical partnership in the US, and we are pleased that such a well-regarded heart centre has joined in our mission to create better detection of the world’s leading killer: heart disease.
"This clinical trial should be completed by October this year and provide validation of the technology and pave the way for its commercial use in the US.”
Those who want to learn more about the partnership and meet the US team members can join a conference call on Tuesday, May 10, at 11:00 am AEST (9:00 am AWST).
The trial
Under its partnership with Artrya, one of Huntsville’s divisions — Heart Center Research LLC — will conduct a study to determine the efficacy of Artrya’s technology.
The multi-scanner, retrospective study will use Artrya’s core solution, known as Salix Coronary Anatomy (SCA).
This AI-based technology can analyse cardiac CT scans to report a unique combination of coronary disease biomarkers, including components of high-risk plaque.
During the study, Huntsville Heart Center researchers will use CT scans that were previously gathered for indicated clinical purposes.
Scans will be anonymised and uploaded to cloud-based Salix, which will automatically interpret the scans using Artrya’s proprietary software.
The interpretation will then be compared with the interpretation of multiple expert readers.
Clinical advisory board appointment
It’s been a busy day of news for Artrya: the healthcare stock has also welcomed Dr John Lewin to its clinical advisory board.
The new appointment, who also goes by Jack, headed up the American College of Cardiology — representing more than 40,000 cardiologists across the States — as CEO between 2006 and 2012.
Artrya’s latest recruit rounds out its clinical advisory board composition, with renowned healthcare executive Dr Jacque J Sokolov at the helm as chair.
About Artrya
Artrya is developing AI-powered imaging software to combat one of the world’s deadliest diseases.
According to Heart Research Australia, heart disease is the country’s single leading cause of death and is estimated to kill one Australian every 28 minutes.
What’s more, damage to the heart’s major blood vessels, known as coronary artery disease (CAD) claims nine million lives worldwide every year.
Artrya’s Salix Coronary Anatomy solution is on a mission to change how the world sees CAD, as well as rapidly improve how clinicians detect and diagnose the heart disease.
In fact, the platform is the only holistic, non-invasive solution that allows clinicians at the point of care to easily assess CAD.
Essentially the software-as-a-service Salix technology harnesses AI to pinpoint vulnerable plaque, stenosis and any other key biomarkers that could underly heart disease.
In November last year, SCA was included on the Australia Register of Therapeutic Goods as a Class 1 Medical Device, meaning it poses very low risk in therapeutic settings.
Beyond Australian soil, Artyra is pursuing expansion opportunities in the United States, Canada and the UK. The company expects first revenue from its SCA product in 2022.