Biocartis’s CEO changes role, net loss inreased to €50M in 2016. New Idyla launched

Biocartis Group has posted net income loss of €50.2 million for 2016, which is loss increase compared to last years €39.7 million net loss.

The company said that Rudi Pauwels will no longer be CEO, and will switch to the role of Chairman of a new Strategy Committee of the Board. Pauwels’ deputy Hilde Windels, will take the role of CEO until a successor is on board is found, which company expects to be in “a few months”.

The company reported increase of operating expenses from €52.0 million in 2015 to €58.2 million in 2016, driven by higher expenses in R&D and Marketing & Distribution and lower expenses for General & Administrative (G&A).

Launching Idylla

In the meantime, the company has reached a certain milestone, as it has, in collaboration with Merck, launched Idylla, its third liquid biopsy test.

This collaboration is aimed at jointly developing and commercializing new liquid biopsy RAS biomarker tests for metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC), Biocartis said.

Under the partnership with Merck, announced in January 2016, CE-marked IVD versions of the liquid biopsy RAS biomarker assays are expected to be launched in the second half of 2017. Once these have been validated for diagnostic use, the tests will be made available to medical centers across the world, said the company.