The information contained within this announcement is deemed by the Company to constitute inside information as stipulated under the Market Abuse Regulations (EU) No. 596/2014. Upon the publication of this announcement via Regulatory Information Service, this inside information is now considered to be in the public domain
Feedback plc
Outcome of strategic review and trading update
New Cadran opportunity to capture medical imaging mobile communication market
Cambridge, 10 July 2019: Feedback plc (AIM: FDBK, "Feedback" or the "Company"), the specialist medical imaging technology company, announces the outcome of its strategic review following the appointment of Dr Tom Oakley as CEO in April 2019. The Board is also pleased to provide a trading update on the year ended 31 May 2019.
Through the process of the review, the Board assessed both the Cadran and the TexRAD portfolios. The Cadran portfolio has been initially prioritised and this announcement relates to the findings of this first phase of the review.
Dr Tom Oakley, CEO of Feedback, commented:
"An exciting opportunity has arisen from the first phase of our strategic review. We believe that Cadran's innovative features, such as the ability to view clinical grade medical images flexibly on mobile and personal devices, allow it to be repositioned to meet the needs of an emerging medical communications market, particularly in medical imaging.
"There is huge potential to improve the efficiencies and lives of our doctors and patients alike, through more flexible, secure and accurate tools utilising the highest standards in global mobile communications. We are now working swiftly to develop this new offering and make it available for the many clinicians eager to use it, both within the NHS and internationally."
Cadran is Feedback's established Picture Archiving and Communications System (PACS) which facilitates the review of medical imaging studies by clinicians. It is a progressive and rigorously tested Class 1 medical device with a longstanding legacy of service at NHS institutions, such as the Royal Papworth Hospital. However, it is currently positioned in a competitive market that shows little opportunity for future growth.
According to an article in BMJ Innovations, 97% of hospital doctors routinely use WhatsApp to communicate about patients*. There is an increasing trend for clinicians to use personal devices to discuss patient care and make clinical decisions, as it is more convenient and efficient than traditional methods of clinical communication. Medical images are often shared as part of these chats as photos of computer screens, and do not meet diagnostic clinical standards. This raises a number of concerns with regard to safety of patient data, breaches of GDPR and the ability to make safe clinical decisions without using clinical grade medical images.
By incorporating a dedicated, encrypted messaging function to Feedback's existing Cadran technology, the Directors believe it can become the only medical communication device on the market capable of sharing clinical grade medical imaging directly from a hospital PACS to mobile devices, ensuring the safe handling of patient data and facilitating a secure means of communication for clinicians across the UK. The Directors believe this new product will also be the only communication tool to be a CE marked medical device.
The repositioning of Cadran marks a shift away from a traditional software sales model towards a SaaS (software as a service) model which is anticipated to generate considerably higher recurring revenues for the Company and lead to a new phase of growth. With over 15 million doctors globally, Cadran is uniquely positioned to set new standards in this emerging, sizeable, medical communications market.
Having undertaken a period of market research alongside NHS clinicians, the Company is investing in the product enhancement of Cadran, and launch of the new product is anticipated towards the end of this calendar year. This rapid turnaround is possible because the core technical features of the product are already established within Cadran and our outsourced development partner, Future Processing, is designing the additional features required.
Whilst driving the development of this exciting opportunity for Cadran, the Board will continue its review of the TexRAD product portfolio. The Company will issue regular updates to the market on the progress of both the TexRAD review and new product opportunities. In the interim, Feedback continues to serve its existing customers across both product portfolios and is committed to the ongoing growth of both Cadran and TexRAD.
Trading update
Feedback also announces an unaudited revenue of £563k for the year ended 31 May 2019, an increase of 23% on the previous financial year (£458k), following new hires and investment in product sales as indicated at the trading update in April 2019.
*O'Sullivan DM, O'Sullivan E, O'Connor M, et al WhatsApp Doc? BMJ Innovations 2017;3:238-239.
-Ends-
Enquiries:
Feedback plc Tom Oakley, CEO Lindsay Melvin, CFO |
+44 (0)1954 718072 [email protected] |
Allenby Capital Limited (Nominated Adviser) David Worlidge / Asha Chotai |
+44 (0)20 3328 5656 |
Peterhouse Corporate Finance Ltd (Joint Broker) Lucy Williams / Duncan Vasey |
+44 (0)20 7469 0936 |
Stanford Capital Partners Limited (Joint Broker) Patrick Claridge / John Howes Instinctif Partners Rozi Morris/ Deborah Bell/ Phillip Marriage |
+44 20 3815 8880 +44 (0)20 7457 2020 [email protected] |
Notes to editors
About Feedback plc
Feedback plc (AIM: FDBK) is a specialist medical imaging technology company providing innovative software and systems, through its fully-owned trading subsidiary, Feedback Medical Limited. Its products advance the work of radiologists, clinicians and medical researchers by improving workflows and giving unique insights into diseases, particularly cancer. Feedback Medical works with customers globally from headquarters in the internationally renowned scientific hub of Cambridge, UK. Its proprietary technologies are TexRAD®, the quantitative texture analysis tool and Cadran, a picture archiving communication system (PACS). For more information, see www.fbk.com
