This year’s Heart Rhythm Society (HRS) meeting was  a great opportunity to take the pulse of electrophysiologists on how they’re incorporating Farapulse and Medtronic’s PulseSelect into their practices, whether these catheters are living up to the hype as they transition to broad commercial use, what technologies they’re displacing as adoption ramps, and how the PFA competitive landscape could evolve over the next 12-18 months as new devices enter the field.

To help us put this year’s meeting takeaways in perspective and think through how the PFA revolution is playing out, we’ve enlisted the help of Dr. Sunil Kapur, a leading electrophysiologist at Brigham and Women's Hospital and Assistant Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School.

The China market remains dynamic for our Life Science Tools & Diagnostics coverage.  On May 17th, Jack Meehan hosted a discussion with Dr. Mao Mao for an updated on-the-ground view as to the factors driving investment trends in the region. 

Topics of discussion included:

1) BioSecure Act: Thoughts on impact of US Congressional efforts to target Chinese competitors, and potential for a response from China on the manufacturers in our coverage.
2) VBP + Local Competition: An updated view on government VBP initiatives, the key local manufacturers, and how they compete with multi-nationals.
3) NGS: An update on results from MGI, and the competitive dynamics with Illumina in the region.
4) Diagnostics: A look at public company results in local companies like Mindray, Burning Rock, KingMed and others.
5) Macro: Perspectives on the current macro situation in China, and implications for investment into life science tools and diagnostics.

On Dec. 11th, Jack Meehan hosted a KOL discussion for an updated on-the-ground view as to the factors driving investment trends in Life Science Tools & Diagnostics in the region. Topics of discussion included: 1) Perspectives on the current macro situation in China, 2) Views on investment into life science tools and diagnostics, 3) a discussion on current capacity for various industries our coverage is exposed to, 4) an update on how the Chinese national government, local provinces and cities approach Life Sciences and Diagnostics purchasing; 5) Recent updates around procurement initiatives in the Diagnostics industry; and 6) An overview on the key local manufacturers, and how they compete with multi-nationals.

On Dec. 11th, Jack Meehan hosted a KOL discussion for an updated on-the-ground view as to the factors driving investment trends in Life Science Tools & Diagnostics in the region. Topics of discussion included: 1) Perspectives on the current macro situation in China, 2) Views on investment into life science tools and diagnostics, 3) a discussion on current capacity for various industries our coverage is exposed to, 4) an update on how the Chinese national government, local provinces and cities approach Life Sciences and Diagnostics purchasing; 5) Recent updates around procurement initiatives in the Diagnostics industry; and 6) An overview on the key local manufacturers, and how they compete with multi-nationals.

On Dec. 5th, Jack Meehan hosted a KOL call on the bioprocessing industry.  Bioprocessing has historically been one of the fastest growing areas of our coverage, and we think the long-term outlook is bright. However, the industry is facing short-term headwinds from excess inventory and the roll-off of demand for COVID-19. 

Topics of discussion on this conference call included an overview on the environment for bioprocessing purchasing, expected growth in gene therapy from Sarepta, stocking trends, views on various suppliers and product categories, and a discussion on quality of CDMO participants. Both of our experts have significant experience as industry consultants in helping customers establish biologics manufacturing and evaluate these big debates.

Our Tools & Dx coverage is facing a macro and micro storm in the China market.  Jack Meehan hosted a discussion with Dr. Mao Mao and Dr. John Zhang for an on-the-ground view as to the factors driving investment trends in Life Science Tools & Diagnostics in the region.

Topics of discussion included:
1) Perspectives on the current macro situation in China,
2) Views on investment into life science tools and diagnostics,
3) a discussion on current capacity for various industries our coverage is exposed to,
4) an update on how the Chinese national government, local provinces and cities approach Life Sciencs and Diagnostics purchasing;
5) Recent updates around procurement initiatives in the Diagnostics industry; and
6) An overview on the key local manufacturers, and how they compete with multi-nationals.

On June 27th, Jack Meehan hosted a discussion on the laboratory and diagnostic industries with two thought leaders in the space. Topics of discussion included:

• COVID-19: Demand for COVID-19 testing solutions is winding down following the conclusion of the public health emergency. We plan to discuss implications for the Diagnostics industry repurposing or de-commissioning equipment taken on, and future anticipated demand for respiratory testing solutions
• MDx Innovation: There are a number of new multi-plex Diagnostic launches underway, including BioFire’s SpotFire system and Quidel’s Savanna (available in Europe). We plan to discuss the commercial viability of these systems, and implications for competition with MDx leaders such as Danaher’s Cepheid and Hologic.
• Operating Environment: Offsetting the weaker COVID demand has been a strong recovery in core testing. We plan to discuss how the combination of pent-up demand, a recessionary backdrop and inflationary factors are impacting the laboratory industry. 
• Regulation: Finally, there are several moving parts on the regulatory environment related to reimbursement and laboratory developed tests.

On June 6th, Jack Meehan hosted a KOL call on the bioprocessing industry.  Topics of discussion on this conference call included an overview on the environment for bioprocessing purchasing, stocking trends, demand dynamics from COVID-19, views on various suppliers and product categories, and a discussion on quality of CDMO participants. 

Following the read-out of Guardant Health’s ECLIPSE study, the big debate is on FDA approvability of the Shield assay in CRC screening. On April 12th, Jack Meehan hosted two former FDA leaders to discuss Shield’s clinical data in ECLIPSE, FDA considerations for approval of the test built on historical experience, and the potential approval pathway for liquid biopsy.

Andrea Chamblee, former FDA Director & senior counsel in the Washington, D.C., office of Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati.
Dr. Sousan Sheldon, President of Medical Consultants, LLC.

Following the read-out of Guardant Health’s ECLIPSE study, we hosted a KOL discussion on how the results and potential introduction of liquid biopsy might influence the market for CRC screening. We were joined by one primary care physician (Dr. Gary Cohen, North Shore Physicians Group) and one gastroenterologist (Dr. Jatin Roper, Duke U. School of Medicine) to get two differing opinions on the ECLIPSE results and potential value of a blood test in the screening paradigm. Topics of discussion also included adoption of non-invasive diagnostics for colorectal cancer screening, such as Cologuard and FIT, as well as recent trends around patient care and screening practices.