Diagnosis of disease enters digital future
Huron Digital Pathology expects demand will grow for its high-tech imaging scanners
ST. JACOBS — Huron Digital Pathology expects a lot of growth after regulatory agencies in Canada, the United States and Europe started approving the use of digital imaging technology for diagnosing disease.
The company, spun out of the University of Waterloo in 1994, recently moved into a bigger space in St. Jacobs as it expects a big increase in business.
A few years ago, Huron Digital standardized the design and manufacture of its digital imaging scanners to make it easier to scale the company.
For the past 15 to 20 years the market for that technology was dominated by medical researchers. Now, thanks to regulatory approvals, it is used to diagnose diseases.
“It has been a really good transition,” said chief executive officer Patrick Myles.
The new facility on King Street North has 5,700 square feet of space, up from 3,300 at its former office on Parkside Drive in Waterloo. The company now employs 20 people, up from 15 before the move.
“The new building allows us to double our capacity,” said Myles. “Plus, at the new facility there are two units that are right next to us, so there is room to expand.”
When surgeons remove tissue or entire organs, samples are prepared on glass slides that are examined under traditional microscopes. That is how 90 per cent of diagnoses are now done, said Myles.
“So there is this humungous market and a huge opportunity to transition from these analog work flows to digital work flows,” said Myles.
The company recently announced a partnership with Grand River Hospital in Kitchener and the University of Waterloo that aims to improve pathological assessment of cancer by creating a medical image search engine.
“There is this huge groundswell of transition from analog to digital, much like what happened 15 years ago with radiology,” said Myles.
Last year, the Food and Drug Administration in the U.S. approved the use of a digital scanner for diagnosing disease. That scanner was made by the Amsterdam-based technology giant Philips, but it has opened the door for others.
“That is going to be a huge catalyst for adoption,” said Myles.
The company worked hard to get international standards certification for medical devices, known as ISO 13485. And its technology just received Health Canada’s approval for primary diagnoses. About six weeks ago, European regulators granted the same approvals.
Huron Digital makes two scanners. While it sells both devices into the U.S., it wants to wait before getting the devices certified by American regulators for primary diagnoses.
“We are letting some of the bigger players cut their teeth on it first, then we will move into that as well,” said Myles.
“We have been able to get the product into the market, into multiple sites, some high-profile sites in the States and Europe,” he said.
“The response from customers has been very good.”
After more than two decades of research and development, testing, manufacturing and regulatory approvals, the company is poised for rapid growth, said Myles.
“Now that we have that solid platform in place, we are working hard to build our distribution in Europe and in the Middle East and Asia. That is where we will see a lot of the growth.”
Before joining Huron Digital in 2014, Myles was a senior manager at Teledyne Dalsa. During his time there, the digital imaging company grew from 115 employees to more than 1,000.
“I have very high expectations for growing this company, and the future looks pretty bright,” said Myles.
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