Hatch Medical to Broker New Biopsy Technology.

Business Editors & Health/Medical Writers

ATLANTA--(BW HealthWire)--April 5, 2001

Medical device incubator and technology brokerage firm, Hatch Medical, L.L.C. (www.hatchmedical.com) recently announced that FNA Concepts, L.L.C.'s patent-pending, automated fine needle aspiration biopsy instrument has become their newest project.

"FNA Concepts' technology fully automates what was once an operator-dependent, manual procedure, improving both diagnostic accuracy and reproducibility. Although full-core needle biopsies have become widely accepted, fine needle aspirated biopsies remain the predominate method used for diagnosing early-stage cancers in soft tissue throughout the world," commented Paul Gianneschi, President and CEO of Hatch Medical, LLC.

Leopold Kaplan, M.D., FNA Concepts' President added, "We are pleased to have Hatch Medical as our exclusive agent, and look forward to identifying a commercial partner committed to bringing this exciting new technology to market."

FNA Concepts' device incorporates technology which mimics current hand held methods, yet improves upon the overall accuracy, reproducibility and speed of the procedure. Because this new technology utilizes small bore needles of 20 - 27 gauge, it is ideally suited to address the needs of physicians performing breast, thyroid and lung, as well as other soft tissue, biopsies. These markets alone represent over 5,000,000 procedures annually.

This technology is available for sale or license to interested third parties through an exclusive agreement with Hatch Medical. Please direct all inquiries to Paul Gianneschi at Hatch Medical via e-mail: [e-mail] or by dialing: 770-982-6306.

In a separate news item, Hatch Medical announced the addition of Steven Hvozda to its executive team. Mr. Hvozda will join Hatch Medical an Executive Vice President and will focus on business development.

"Steve is a seasoned professional who brings exceptional experience and depth to our organization. A 12-year veteran of the industry, Steve led VasCath's tremendous growth in the venous access market as their Director of Marketing. Following CR Bard, Inc.'s acquisition, Steve served in a variety of senior management roles at Bard's Peripheral Technologies Division, and was most recently Global Director of Sales and Marketing at Bard's Carotid Endovascular Systems Group," commented Mr. Gianneschi.

"I am pleased to be joining an aggressive, market oriented company focused on meeting the needs of physician inventors, device organizations and patients," said Mr. Hvozda.

Hatch Medical brokers and jointly develops minimally invasive medical devices for the diagnosis and treatment of vascular and oncological disease through its network of product development experts. Hatch Medical team members include intellectual property and transactional attorneys, biomedical engineers, regulatory affairs consultants, marketing and business development executives, medical device manufacturers, university teaching hospitals and leading physicians.

Through Hatch Medical's unique risk-sharing program, product development team members exchange services and resources for equity in physician conceived projects. This structure enables the physician inventor to benefit from the services of industry experts without paying upfront costs or out-of-pocket expenses, while maintaining meaningful equity.

For additional information contact Hatch Medical, L.L.C., Paul Gianneschi, 770-982-6306, fax: [phone] or e-mail: [e-mail].