SMART's G-EYE balloon technology to be integrated on PENTAX Medical's full HD+ colonoscopes

SMART Medical Systems Ltd., a developer and manufacturer of innovative endoscopy products, announced a strategic alliance with PENTAX Medical, an industry leader in endoscopic imaging. Under the alliance, SMART's novel G-EYE™ balloon technology will be integrated on PENTAX Medical's full HD+ colonoscopes, and will be distributed by PENTAX Medical in Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA).

Colorectal cancer, considered to be one of the most lethal cancer types, evolves from adenomas (pre-cancerous polyps) that develop in the mucosal layer of the colon, and can be detected and removed in routine colonoscopy examination. Nevertheless, a significant number of polyps and adenomas (typically 25-40%) are missed during conventional colonoscopy. The G-EYE™ endoscope provides enhanced visualization of the colon, and has shown in recent clinical studies to enable significant increase in polyp and adenoma detection alongside considerable reduction in polyp and adenoma miss-rate, compared with conventional colonoscopy. The G-EYE™ endoscope is constructed of a conventional colonoscope onto which SMART's proprietary balloon is permanently integrated. Controlled Withdrawal™ of the G-EYE™ endoscope with the balloon moderately inflated flattens colon folds, straightens lumen topography, centralizes the optical image and reduces bowel slippage, altogether increasing detection yield. Once polyp is detected, balloon anchoring in the colon facilitates fast and accurate polyp removal. This innovative product received the Frost & Sullivan New Product Innovation Award for year 2013, and represents an elegant and intuitive approach for providing substantial enhancement in clinical performance while maintaining the conventional endoscopic technology and practice.

"Partnering with PENTAX Medical is an ultimate way for us to bring the G-EYE™ colonoscopy solution to the market," said Gadi Terliuc, Founder and CEO of SMART. "Our mission is to provide the GI specialists with the most advanced endoscopy device so that they can provide the best possible care to their patients. PENTAX Medical, as a market leader in the endoscopy field, can make the G-EYE™ a widely available product and a new standard of care in colonoscopy."

The G-EYE™ endoscope was formally launched at the recent United European Gastroenterology Week (UEGW), held in Berlin, Germany. The commercial G-EYE™ model, based on the PENTAX i10 Full HD+ colonoscope, was demonstrated in the PENTAX Medical booth at the UEGW exhibition. The results of a clinical study comparing G-EYE™ colonoscopy detection yield to conventional colonoscopy, reporting substantial increase in polyp and adenoma detection and significantly reduced miss-rate, were presented at the UEGW scientific conference.