All that is required is a single drop of blood taken from the tip of the finger and placed on a cartridge, and in about twenty minutes the patient finds out whether he or she has HIV or viral hepatitis B or C. These three infections are responsible for the deaths of nearly 1.8 million people worldwide each year. MagIA diagnostics’ rapid, global and mobile approach is particularly suitable for screening centers, sexual health centers or family planning centers, and, over time, local medical practices and pharmacies. This approach targets, in particular, vulnerable populations, who for various reasons, do not go to laboratories, or do not come back to pick up the results of their blood tests. Because up until today, these medical interventions were in large majority carried out in laboratories, with the help of impressive automated machines, over several hours and in several stages. The process can now be completed in a single stage on a roaming device!
“This low-cost device delivers quality analyses, for all immunoassays. They represent 30% of analyses carried out by laboratories,” Paul Kauffman, CEO of MagIA pointed out. Currently, there are few technologies that allow the combined screening of several pathologies at the same time, in the field. However, “while 85% of HIV cases are screened in Western countries, this number falls to around 20% for hepatitis,” Paul Kauffmann continued.
The device is expected to receive CE marking by mid-2024. The production line is already operational. The consumables are, in addition, manufactured in Grenoble, France, in the Alps. The first production batches will be delivered by the end of 2022.
“With MagIA diagnostics, our goal is to offer a mobile device for the combined screening of HIV and the main co-infections, hepatitis B and C, in order to incorporate all vulnerable populations into a suitable care program,” Paul Kauffman, CEO.
The reader will be tested on 150 patients at the European Hospital of Marseille starting at the end of 2022. “We will then demonstrate on 6,700 samples that our solution performs in line with standards,” said the CEO. This clinical validation will be financed by fundraising carried out between now and the end of 2022.
The long-term objective is to apply this technology to a range of respiratory infections and to serology in pregnant women for example.
The startup is one of the winners of the Next French Healthcare Program. As the company enters a phase of international prospecting, “this support allows it to refine its understanding of the U.S. market, in respect of the regulatory part, market access, medical practices, … with different screening policies and different players,” Paul Kauffmann acknowledged. During the roadshow in November 2022, MagIA will familiarize itself with this ecosystem by meeting screening organizations, insurance companies and foundations.