Sales of Injeq IQ-TipR equipment started at the end of 2021, when Injeq received the CE marking for its products. Each country has its own regulatory approval, its own way of reimbursing citizens’ medical care, and purchasing practices that vary from hospital to hospital. Launching a new treatment practice for clinicians takes work and time. For new markets, leasing equipment has been arranged for the demonstration stage, and the distributor has purchased the necessary consumables. Injeq equipment has been loaned to simulation centres, where medical students and postgraduate students practice procedures with real equipment. Research collaboration is also an opportunity to increase experts’ confidence in the new device and operating method.
During the past year, new distributor agreements have been negotiated, best practices have been sought for sales work for clinicians, and discussions have been held with clinical experts. Still on sales work, we approach doctors in neonatology, pediatrics, oncology, but neurologists, and especially neuropediatricians, are interested in the benefits offered by the IQ-TipR system. As with leukaemia, traumatic punctures are harmful in neurology. In leukaemia, cancer cells enter the central nervous system with the blood, and in neurology, a bloody sample hinders a reliable diagnosis. Neurological drugs are administered intrathecally, that is, into the cerebrospinal fluid. When listening to researchers or reading reports from authorities, problems with these drugs are often related to drug administration, i.e. lumbar puncture. Patients experience headaches and back pain. In the case of expensive medicines, there is also a desire to make pharmacotherapy more efficient, i.e. the administration of medicines should not require unreasonable special arrangements. Equally, e.g. in the case of a new drug for Alzheimer’s disease, we are talking about how research into neurological drugs requires special expertise, which is not enough. Research requires high-quality CSF samples, experienced doctors and volunteers for research. Here you need Injeq IQ-Tip.
In its sales, Injeq also invests in reaching out to pharmaceutical industry research groups, university researchers and patient associations. Intrathecal drug administration or sampling with the Injeq IQ-Tip equipment brings the procedures into the 2000s: the first puncture is successful, high-quality samples are obtained and post-dural puncture headaches are reduced. This will encourage volunteers for clinical studies and speed up drug development.
Further reading:
Dr Howard Fillit, the co-founder and chief science officer of the Alzheimer’s Drug Discovery Foundation in STAT News:
https://www.statnews.com/2023/07/07/leqembi-lecanemab-eisai-alzheimers-biomarkers/
