Good Call Media filmed in Las Vegas, USA, to prepare the way for a major new announcement by our clients, New York Stock Exchange-quoted Volition RX.

Long, drawn out, expensive tests are not what you want if you suspect your dog has cancer.

So many congratulations to Volition Vet, who after many years of scientific endeavour, signed an exclusive global supply and licensing agreement with Heska Corporation to distribute their Nu.Q^® Vet Cancer Screening Test.   This will enable vets to screen for cancer in dogs using Volition’s simple blood test and one of Heska’s point of care test systems, receiving the results in their surgery right there and then.

“We are thrilled to announce this agreement with Heska, a company dedicated to developing the next generation of rapid, highly affordable, point-of-care diagnostics for companion animals,” commented Dr. Tom Butera, Chief Executive Officer of Volition Veterinary Diagnostics Development LLC.

“As such, we want to make our Nu.Q^® Vet Cancer Screening Test as accessible as possible to veterinarians around the world, ensure cancer is detected earlier, and improve outcomes for pets and pet owners.”

Watch our film to hear more from Dr Tom Butera and Volition’s new partner Heska’s CEO Kevin Wilson.

Good Call Media has started the New Year at a cracking pace, blasting off with work from existing and new clients who are determined to forge ahead as the world comes out of the Covid crisis!

First off we have just completed a comprehensive video highlighting the past year of events at Volition RX, the New York Stock Exchange quoted company that is dedicated to the diagnosing and monitoring of life-altering diseases by advancing the science of epigenetic.

You can see the video by clicking here

Hard on the heels of this work is the announcement that Good Call Media has been appointed as video partner in the development and building of a world-class testing centre at a major UK university in conjunction with a US-based company that is a global leader in this field.

We cannot say too much about this assignment currently but watch this space later in the year.

We are also going to be the video providers behind the annual World Veterinary Association Global Animal Welfare Awards, sponsored by our major client,Ceva Santé Animale,  in its fifth year, which will involve hosting the Awards on stage in Abu Dhabi in late March.

Our company has also been tasked with creating the colourful ‘back-story’ videos for the event, featuring the work of veterinarians, vet nurses and technicians, student vets and a vet school, that have gone above and beyond in the field of animal welfare over the last 12 months.

And this is just the start – there will be more news about further assignments coming soon.

When our leading client, the global veterinary health company, Ceva Animal Health (Ceva Santé Animale), wanted to publicise a revolutionary new method of testing for a serious disease in animals and humans, they came to us for help on the video front.

We also produced a series of shorter videos to support the launch throughout Ceva’s social media channels.

Q fever is a highly contagious zoonosis, that also has a strong negative impact on the health and reproductive performance of dairy farms.

Recent surveys suggest that Coxiella burnetii, the bacteria responsible for Q fever, is present on at least half of European dairy farms. However, as the disease is mostly insidious and the diagnosis can be quite challenging, only a small percentage of farmers know that Q fever is present in their farms.

In an effort to build awareness on this dangerous but preventable disease, Ceva’s ruminant team has developed a new diagnostic tool – the QTest.

See the main video report we produced to help announce and explain the test:

The QTest is based on the use of the established FTA^® technology, that fixates and inactivates the bacteria on sample collection cards, making it ready to be sent safely by conventional post mail without the need to refrigerate.

A paper published recently online by the Journal of Dairy Science¹, the world’s leading peer-reviewed dairy research journal, presents evidence from validation trials that show Ceva’s QTest is an effective and practical approach to the diagnosis of Q fever in dairy herds. The authors demonstrated that QTest cards spotted with milk samples known to be contaminated with Coxiella burnetii were stable at temperatures up to 37°C for 29 days, and that in PCR tests conducted using milk samples stored for up to 14 days, detection was higher for the QTest cards than for raw milk.

Philippe Gisbert, Ceva’s Ruminants Global Technical Manager, highlights: “To our knowledge, it is the first time that FTA® technology has been used for the diagnosis of Q Fever using bulk tank milk as sample matrix. This tool offers a breakthrough innovation to farmers and veterinarians, by making the diagnosis easier and therefore increasing awareness of the disease and leading to better management of the disease in herds as well as better zoonotic risk management.”

For more detailed information  visit the Ceva blog.

Our client Volition RX, quoted on the New York Stock Exchange, has had an amazing year in 2021 despite the ongoing pandemic.

As our interview on their quarterly financial results showed, the company has been making positive headway on the development of its tests for cancers in humans and animals: See the financial interview here:

“We have enjoyed an exciting quarter navigating the due diligence process and negotiations with three multi-national companies to advance term sheets for Nu.Q^® Vet licensing and distribution arrangements and anticipate signing a term sheet with one of those parties before the end of 2021,” commented Cameron Reynolds, President and Chief Executive Officer of Volition. “We have also made progress in other key areas including our Nu.Q^® NETs and Nu.Q^® Capture programs as we shift gears towards our goal of becoming a commercial company with products.”

Highlights of the quarter include: healthy balance sheet with approximately $22.9 million in cash and cash equivalents; advanced term sheet negotiations with three large multi-national veterinary companies on potential worldwide licensing/distribution arrangements; expanded the Company’s intellectual property portfolio. Made significant progress with the Company’s Nu.Q® NETs development Continued focus on, and made strong progress towards additional new product launches and licensing in both the human and veterinary spaces worldwide.

Company Highlights

Volition Veterinary

In advanced term sheet negotiations with three top global veterinary companies and anticipate signing a term sheet with one of those parties before the end of 2021. Published two abstracts at the Veterinary Cancer Society Annual Conference including: the first data published in relation to what will likely be the second Nu.Q® Vet product, a disease monitoring tool, on track for a planned launch in 2022; and the first study using Nu.Q® Capture as an enrichment tool in the plasma of dogs with lymphoma.

Financial

Cash and cash equivalents as of September 30, 2021, totalled approximately $22.9 million compared with $19.4 million as of December 31, 2020. Cash burn rate averaged approximately $1.7 million per month, lower than the rate during the previous two quarters and also below the Company’s expectations. Net loss for the third quarter of 2021 was $7.2 million versus $5.6 million the prior quarter with this increase primarily due to non-cash items.

Personnel/ Operational

Dr. Gaetan Michel, Chief Operating Officer, has relocated to the U.S. and is tasked with expanding the team with roles expected to be filled in the quality, regulatory and manufacturing functions. On November 1, Mr. Nick Plummer joined the Company as Group General Counsel.

Intellectual Property

27 patent families (plus three in-licensed families) covering both human and animal use of Volition’s Nucleosomics™ platform. 82 granted patents (12 in the U.S., 14 in Europe and 56 rest of world). 82 patents pending. Continued focus on filings during the third quarter of 2021 and expect portfolio to grow in the quarters and years ahead.