Devicor Medical Products, Inc. (Cincinnati, OH, USA), a portfolio company of the private equity firm GTCR (Chicago, IL, USA), announced the completion of its agreement to acquire the neoprobe gamma detection system (GDS) products and related assets from Neoprobe Corp. (Dublin, OH, USA).

Devicor previously provided distribution and marketing services to Neoprobe for the GDS portfolio. Financial terms of the agreement included US$30 million cash at close plus up to an additional $20 million in royalties based on revenue milestones. The sale was approved by Neoprobe’s shareholders on August 15, 2011.

“We are excited to complete this agreement with Neoprobe and believe this is a significant step toward our goal of building a market leading medical device business,” stated Devicor CEO Tom Daulton. “We look forward to welcoming to Devicor all of the dedicated Neoprobe employees responsible for this growing product portfolio, as we plan to expand the business further through our global direct sales platform and additional R&D investment.”

The acquisition of the neoprobe GDS line comes approximately a year after Devicor’s acquisition of Ethicon Endo-Surgery’s (EES) breast care business, Mammotome (Sharonville, OH, USA), which sells products designed to help physicians detect and diagnose breast cancer. GTCR invested additional equity capital in Devicor to finance a portion of the purchase price of the neoprobe GDS assets.

“The funding of additional equity capital by GTCR to support our growth is an excellent example of the strong partnerships GTCR forms with management teams to acquire and expand successful companies in healthcare and other industries,” said Jonathan Salkin, Devicor’s executive vice president of corporate development & strategy.

The Mammotome product range is sold in 50 countries worldwide and includes the Mammotome breast biopsy system as well as tissue markers for breast disease diagnostic sampling and management. Mammotome has distributed and marketed Neoprobe’s range of gamma detection systems since 2000, as part of EES and then continuing as part of Devicor.

Devicor, the parent corporation of Mammotome , is a fast-growing global company focused on acquiring and growing healthcare companies. With an initial focus on the breast cancer market, the company is dedicated to building a global business through the investment in, and development of, tools and technologies that facilitate minimally invasive medical procedures.

Mammotome, has more than 300 employees worldwide. The company is focused on advancing technology to help clinicians accurately diagnose breast disease, such as breast cancer, through minimally invasive procedures. Sold in more than 50 countries around the world, the Mammotome product portfolio includes the Mammotome breast biopsy system and tissue markers (MammoMARK, MicroMARK, and CorMARK) used in breast disease diagnostic sampling and management. Since its introduction in 1995, more than 3.4 million women have had a minimally invasive breast biopsy in stereotactic, ultrasound or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)-guidance imaging using the Mammotome biopsy system.

Neoprobe is a biomedical company focused on enhancing oncology patient care and improving patient benefit. In addition, Neoprobe holds significant interests in the development of related biomedical systems and radiopharmaceutical agents including Lymphoseek and RIGScan CR. Neoprobe’s strategy is to deliver growth and shareholder return by maximizing its strong position in gamma detection technologies and diversifying into new, synergistic biomedical markets through continued investment and selective acquisitions.

GTCR is a leading private equity firm focused on investing in growth companies in the financial services & technology, healthcare and information services and technology industries. Since its inception, GTCR has invested more than $8.5 billion in over 200 companies.
 

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