UE LifeSciences Collaboration Expands Access for Breast Screenings
KUALA LUMPUR, 18 JULY 2023 – Duopharma Biotech Berhad (“Duopharma Biotech”) through its wholly-owned subsidiary, Duopharma Marketing Sdn Bhd (“Duopharma Marketing”), has signed a Distribution Agreement with U.S. based women’s health innovator company, UE LifeSciences Inc.’s Malaysian wholly-owned subsidiary UE LifeSciences Sdn Bhd (“UE LifeSciences”) in May 2023. In an exchange of documents ceremony held here in conjunction with UE LifeSciences’ visit to Duopharma Biotech group, the collaboration is set to commercialise and scale a breast screening medical devicein Malaysia, a breakthrough innovation for accessible breast lesion detection for women.
Under the distribution agreement, UE LifeSciences and Duopharma Marketing plan to collaborate with the private and governmental healthcare sectors by making this handheld medical device available at primary-care clinics across Malaysia to bridge the lack of access to early detection. The collaboration will empower frontline healthcare providers with the mobile tools to drive preliminary screening in the community, where women live and work. The device is designed for use by frontline health workers, nurses, primary care providers and NGOs operating in women’s health areas.
“As a homegrown healthcare company with a vision of ‘Providing Smarter Solutions for a Healthier Life’, we are committed to optimising our capabilities to improve healthcare outcomes among Malaysians. There are still too many in the community who do not go for regular screenings and instead only see a doctor when there is a serious complaint, which can be too late for effective treatment. Thus, by Duopharma Marketing partnering with UE LifeSciences to distribute their mobile breast screening device among frontline healthcare providers in the community, we hope to increase access to preliminary screening and ultimately encourage Malaysian women to schedule full regular screenings, to improve lives in the longer term,” said Leonard Ariff Abdul Shatar, Group Managing Director, Duopharma Biotech Berhad.
According to the Malaysian Study on Cancer Survival 2018, the 5-year relative survival rate for breast cancer among Malaysian women was 87.5% for stage I, 80.7% for stage II, 59.7% for stage III and 23.3% for stage IV. This highlights the importance of early detection of breast cancer in increasing the chance of successful treatment and reducing cancer-related mortality.
The device is intended to produce a surface map of the breast as an aid in detecting and documenting breast lesions identified in the breast. It is intended for use by a qualified healthcare professional trained in its use. The patient population includes adults. It is a non-invasive, hand-held, fully wireless mobile health point-of-care solution for breast lesion detection. The device uses patented sensor technology that electro-mechanically palpates the breast tissue to differentiate variances in tissue elasticity. It enables a trained user to administer and record breast exams objectively, consistently and with the ability to share the results easily using a mobile device.
The aforesaid distribution agreement is in the ordinary course of the Duopharma Biotech Group’s business.