Neoprobe unlocks more financing from Platinum Montaur - Business First of Columbus:

Neoprobe unlocks more financing from Platinum Montaur - Business First of Columbus:

Medical device developer Neoprobe Corp. has locked in millions of dollars in additional financing from a key investor as it moves closer to completing pre-market testing of its cancer-detecting Lymphoseek drug.

The Dublin company this week said New York investor Platinum Montaur Life Sciences LLC has agreed to exercise all 6 million stock warrants it had been issued, a move that will result in $3.45 million in proceeds by October. Platinum Montaur, which signed a financing accord with Neoprobe in late 2007, had until December 2013 to cash in the warrants.

Neoprobe (OTC BB:NEOP) this week also tweaked provisions of its agreement with the medical investment fund that make a $7 million note fully convertible into stock and will lead to the issuing of another $2.3 million worth of stock warrants.

Neoprobe locked in $13 million in financing from Platinum Montaur over the course of a year as it mounted clinical testing of Lymphoseek, which identifies the lymph node to which fluid drains first from a breast cancer or melanoma tumor site. The company also is making strides in the development of Rigscan, a diagnostic tool for colorectal cancer that fell short of Food and Drug Administration approval more than a decade ago.

“The additional financial resources provided by the exercise of the warrants assure the financial resources to complete the development of Lymphoseek and to prepare for the commencement of a new phase 3 evaluation of the Rigs technology,” CEO David Bupp said in a release.

Bupp said some changes to the company’s financing agreement with the investor also reduce non-cash liabilities on its balance sheet.

Lymphoseek is on its way to the second leg of the third and final clinical-trial phase, with marketing clearances from U.S. and European regulators up ahead. The Rigscan technology has received favorable assessments from European regulators while a review by the FDA awaits.

Dr. Michael Goldberg, a Montaur principal, called Neoprobe an excellent investment opportunity but said it’s pushing the company to boost shareholder value by assessing its strategic options with an investment bank. Neoprobe, which employs 25, lost $5.2 million on $7.9 million in revenue last year.