Stella Diagnostics (OTC: SLDX)

Stella Diagnostics (OTC: SLDX) is a molecular diagnostics-based organization focused on improving patient management strategies for over 60 million people living with severe esophageal disease. The company is developing first-line diagnostic tools that provide superior molecular information for providers as compared to the current standard screening protocols.

Stella Diagnostic’s mass spec proteomic assays will offer physicians insight into the molecular properties of their patients’ tissue to determine if the disease is stable, progressing or turning cancerous.

SLDX needs one tiny slice of a biopsy a doctor takes from a patient’s esophagus to diagnose if that patient will suffer from esophageal cancer 2.4 years earlier than the current diagnostic protocols. This could provide physicians and medical personnel with an opportunity to manage the patient’s care, and save lives.

SLDX signed a Collaborative Agreement for research with the Mayo Clinic this time last year. SLDX also has a research agreement with Kansas University Medical Center, to assess the specificity, sensitivity, predictability and clinical utility of the BEsmart Test. Stella Diagnostics and the Mayo Clinic were selected to present at United States & Canadian Academy of Pathology’s 112th Annual Meeting March 11 to 16, 2023 in New Orleans, LA.

If you know someone who has suffered from esophageal cancer, then you know it is the fastest rising and deadliest cancer in the US. Esophageal adenocarcinoma (EAC) is the most deadly neoplasm in oncology and has the fastest rising rate of incidence. Every 30 minutes, a person dies from EAC in the US.

Stella Diagnostics STLA101 mass spec proteomic assay (BEsmart) was selected as the winner of the “Best Clinical Proteomics Solution of the Year” award for 2021 in the inaugural awards program conducted by BioTech Breakthrough.

Stella Diagnostics is working towards providing comprehensive information to gastroenterologists, oncologists and pathologists regarding the molecular expression trends indicative of disease stability, progression and/or carcinogenesis. The goal is to take it beyond routine gross and microscopic screening of esophageal diseases.

Esophageal adenocarcinoma, linked to Barrett’s esophagus, has one of the highest mortality rates in oncology, as more than 80% of patients diagnosed with esophageal adenocarcinoma have already progressed to advanced-stage cancer at the time of diagnosis. The mass spectroscopy-based proteomic assay, STLA101 gives physicians a clear insight into the molecular properties of their patients’ tissue. It helps to determine if the disease is stable, progressing, or venturing towards cancerous.

As of now, the company is currently undergoing optimization on its BEsmart proteomic panel (STLA101) in partnership with mProbe, Inc., and has entered into several collaborative research agreements with leading institutions around the U.S., including the Mayo Clinic and Kansas University Medical Center, to assess assay performance of the BEsmart Test.

Esophageal cancer is currently the fastest rising, deadliest cancer in the U.S. There are 60 million people living with severe esophageal disease. SLDX plans to use targeted mass spectrometry proteomics, so physicians know the expression patterns playing a role in the pathogenesis of GERD, Barrett’s esophagus and esophageal cancer early in the treatment plan may extend or save lives.

Joe Abdo, PhD – Chief Scientific Officer – has over a decade of experience in molecular oncology research, and R&D and business development in both private and public biotechnology organizations. Dr. Abdo has won several awards for his research and has published over a dozen articles and a text book in the fields of molecular oncology, proteomics, genomics, immunotherapy and gastrointestinal diseases, placing advancements in patient care at the forefront of his work. He earned a PhD in Clinical and Translational Science from Creighton University School of Medicine where he investigated biochemical mechanisms of Barrett’s-related esophageal adenocarcinoma. He also received a Master’s degree in Biotechnology from Georgetown University School of Medicine where he researched genomic and proteomic expression abnormalities in patients with gastro-intestinal diseases. Most recently, he was the Chief Executive Officer of Stella Diagnostics and was the Senior Director of Clinical and Translational Science at PolarityTE, MD Inc.

David Seaburg – Chief Executive Officer – spent the past 25 years of his career at Cowen, Inc., a leading healthcare franchise in equities research, sales and investment banking. He was Managing Director, Head of Sales Trading and a member of the Cowen’s Equity Operating Committee, where he cultivated and led teams operating across multiple disciplines and specialties, leveraging human capital to drive the organization’s success. Over the course of his tenure, he interacted with thousands of healthcare investors and corporate management teams. Mr. Seaburg was recently the CEO of a publicly traded biotechnology organization, PolarityTE MD, Inc., and was formerly an analyst on CNBC’s Fast Money, where he provided regular on-air market commentary for the network. David is a co-founder of Stella Diagnostics and serves on the Company’s Board of Directors.

Peter Cohen, the ex-CEO of Cowen and Company, Shearson Lehman and American Express is on SLDX’s Board of Directors. The rest of the Board is rounded out by hedge fund managers, who also see the huge potential.

Stella Diagnostics meets several of our key criteria for a successful growth company. The company has a breakthrough technology, honest and competent management, a tremendous amount of insider ownership, excellent products and services, and little or no debt. Stella Diagnostics’ STLA101 mass spec proteomic assay (BEsmart) was selected as the winner of the “Best Clinical Proteomics Solution of the Year” award for 2021 in the inaugural awards program conducted by BioTech Breakthrough. There were more than 1,200 nominations from 12 different countries competing in this year’s annual competition.

Stella Diagnostics’ BEsmart test is easy for a physician to use and it doesn’t impose on the work they do in their own lab. It requires one tiny slice of tissue from the patient’s biopsy the doctor takes from a patient’s esophagus to diagnose if that patient will suffer from esophageal cancer 2.4 years earlier than the current diagnostic protocols. This could provide physicians and medical personnel with an opportunity to manage the patient’s care, and save lives.

Stella Diagnostics signed a Collaborative Agreement for research with the Mayo Clinic this time last year. Stella Diagnostics also has a research agreement with Kansas University Medical Center, to assess the specificity, sensitivity, predictability and clinical utility of the BEsmart Test. The company believes that clinicians are eager to expand precision oncology into early-stage cancer and have access to additional molecular data on their patients diseased tissue, yielding improved outcomes. Stella Diagnostics’ solution is capable of detecting disease burden, even when other methodologies fail because we assess the active disease drivers specific to esophageal indications based upon the proteomic profile of their diseased tissue and therefore anticipate this method is superior. This approach could revolutionize how Barrett’s esophagus and esophageal adenocarcinoma is screened and managed by measuring cancer risk, cancer progression, and therapy sensitization of esophageal lesions, determining an optimal treatment regimen and potentially refining therapeutic options.

Stella Diagnostics is a company that could have a positive impact on people’s lives. The stock trades SLDX on the OTC. It has a tight float, has a management team that looks more like a NASDAQ or NYSE biotech team, is not heavily promoted, and has blockbuster potential with its breakthrough technology. How you trade it is up to you, but this company could save a lot of lives by detecting esophageal cancer before it even starts.