Lucid Diagnostics Inc. 10-K

Item 1A. Risk Factors The following risk factors and other information included in this Annual Report on Form 10-K should be carefully considered. The risks and uncertainties described below are not the only ones we face. Additional risks and uncertainties not presently known to us or we presently deem less significant may also impair our business operations. If any of the following risks occur, our business, financial condition, results of operations and future growth prospects could be materially and adversely affected. Risks Factor Summary Our business is subject to numerous risks and uncertainties that you should consider before investing in our common stock. These risks are described more fully below and include, but are not limited to, risks relating to the following: Risks Associated with Our Financial Condition ● We have incurred operating losses since our inception and may not be able to achieve profitability. ● We have concluded there is substantial doubt of our ability to continue as a going concern and our independent registered public accounting firm’s report on our financial statements contains an explanatory paragraph describing our ability to continue as a going concern. ● To raise capital, we have issued a significant amount of convertible securities under which we expect to issue a correspondingly significant amount of shares of our common stock upon conversion thereof. In addition, we may issue shares of our capital stock or debt securities in the future in order to raise capital to fund our operations. All of the foregoing would dilute the equity interest of our stockholders and might cause a change in control of our ownership. ● We expect to need additional capital funding, which may be compounded by our obligations to our parent company, PAVmed, which requires its own additional capital funding. ● Our quarterly operating results could be subject to significant fluctuation, which could increase the volatility of our stock price and cause losses to our stockholders. ● Servicing our indebtedness may require a significant amount of cash, and the restrictive covenants contained in our indebtedness could adversely affect our business plan, liquidity, financial condition, and results of operations. Risks Associated with Our Business ● Since we have a limited operating history, and have not generated any significant revenues to date, you will have little basis upon which to evaluate our ability to achieve our business objective. ● The markets in which we operate are attractive and other companies or institutions may develop and market novel or improved technologies, which may make the EsoGuard or EsoCheck technologies less competitive or obsolete. ● We expect to derive substantially all of our revenues from the EsoGuard and EsoCheck products. ● We are highly dependent on our license agreement with CWRU, the termination of which would prevent us from commercializing our products, and which imposes significant obligations on us. ● Our products may never achieve market acceptance. ● The sizes of the markets for our current and future products have not been established with precision, and may be smaller than we estimate. ● Recommendations in published clinical practice guidelines issued by various organizations, including professional societies and federal agencies may significantly affect payors’ willingness to cover, and physicians’ willingness to prescribe, our products and services. ● We or our third-party manufacturers may not have the manufacturing and processing capacity to meet the production requirements of consumer demand or clinical testing in a timely manner. ● If demand for our EsoGuard test grows, we may lack adequate facility space and capabilities to meet increased processing requirements. Moreover, if these or any future facilities or their equipment were damaged or destroyed, or if we experience a significant disruption in our commercial clinical laboratory operations for any reason, our ability to continue to operate our business could be materially harmed. ● Our results of operations can be adversely affected by labor shortages, turnover, and labor cost increases. ● We expect to rely on courier delivery services to transport EsoCheck devices and EsoGuard specimen kits to physicians and other medical professionals and samples back to laboratory facilities for analysis. If these delivery services are disrupted or become prohibitively expensive, customer satisfaction and our business could be negatively impacted. ● If we attempt to bring any other products or services to market in addition to the EsoGuard test and EsoCheck device, we likely will be required to make significant investments in research and development, which ultimately may prove unsuccessful. Our future performance may be affected by the success of products we have not yet developed, licensed, acquired. ● Our ability to be successful will be totally dependent upon the efforts of our key personnel. ● Our officers and directors have fiduciary obligations to other companies and, accordingly, may have conflicts of interest in determining to which entity a particular business opportunity should be presented. ● Our business may suffer if we are unable to manage our growth. ● Our business, financial condition and results of operations could be adversely affected by the political and economic conditions of the U.S. and the other countries in which we conduct business. ● We may engage in acquisitions that are not successful and which could disrupt our business, cause dilution to our stockholders and reduce our financial resources. ● Adverse results in material litigation matters could have a material adverse effect upon our business. 17 Risks Associated with Healthcare Regulation, Billing and Reimbursement, and Product Safety and Effectiveness. ● If private or governmental third-party payors do not maintain reimbursement for our products at adequate reimbursement rates, we may be unable to successfully commercialize our products which would limit or slow our revenue generation and likely have a material adverse effect on our business. ● FDA has proposed a policy under which it would phase out its general enforcement discretion approach for LDTs so that IVDs manufactured at a laboratory would generally fall under the same enforcement approach as other IVDs. While we are confident that the proposed policy will not have a material impact on our business, there can be no assurance that will be the case. ● If we fail to maintain CLIA-certification or otherwise meet the applicable requirements of federal or state law regulating commercial clinical laboratories, such failure could limit or prevent our ability to perform our EsoGuard test, or any other tests which we may develop, license or acquire, affect any payor consideration of such tests, prevent their clearance or approval entirely, and/or interrupt the commercial sale and/or marketing of any such tests, cause us to incur significant expense to remedy this failure and otherwise negatively impact our business. ● EsoGuard may not be jointly marketed as a combined product with EsoCheck without first securing FDA approval of the combined product as an IVD device. If FDA deems that we are jointly marketing such an IVD product with EsoCheck without FDA approval of the combined product as an IVD device, we would be subject to FDA enforcement action which could limit or halt commercialization of our products, and result in FDA sanctions which could severely impact our business. ● Securing FDA approval of EsoGuard as an IVD device, separately or as a combined product with EsoCheck, is a complex process requiring substantial time, commitment of resources and expense without any assurance that FDA will grant such approval. ● Failure to obtain regulatory approvals in foreign jurisdictions will prevent us from marketing our products internationally. ● Modifications to our cleared or approved products may require new clearances or premarket approvals, or may require us to cease marketing or recall the modified products until clearances are obtained. ● Clinical trials necessary to support regulatory submission will be expensive and will require the enrollment of large numbers of patients, and suitable patients may be difficult to identify and recruit. Delays or failures in our clinical trials will prevent us from expanding our commercial efforts and will adversely affect our business, operating results and prospects. ● The results of our clinical trials may not support our product candidate claims or may result in the discovery of adverse side effects. ● If our clinical studies do not satisfy providers, payors, patients and others as to the reliability and performance of our EsoGuard test and the EsoCheck device, or any other product or service we may develop and seek to commercialize, we may experience reluctance or refusal on the part of physicians to order, and third-party payors to pay for, such test. ● EsoCheck and any other products we develop that receive regulatory clearance or approval will be subject to ongoing regulatory obligations and continued regulatory review, which may result in significant additional expense and subject us to penalties if we fail to comply with applicable regulatory requirements. ● If we are found to be promoting the use of our devices for unapproved or “off-label” uses or engaging in other noncompliant activities, we may be subject to recalls, seizures, fines, penalties, injunctions, adverse publicity, prosecution, or other adverse actions, resulting in damage to our reputation and business. ● Clinical laboratories and medical diagnostic companies are subject to extensive and frequently changing federal, state, and local laws. We could be subject to significant fines and penalties if we fail (or if our prior unrelated third-party laboratory partner previously failed) to comply with these laws and regulations. ● We operate Lucid Test Centers where prescribing physicians can send patients for EsoGuard testing, including undergoing specimen collection using EsoCheck. These Lucid Test Centers are subject to federal and state regulations which may be burdensome, costly or difficult to comply with. Failure to comply with these regulations could result in sanctions, fines or other enforcement actions which may be costly, time-consuming and limit our ability to utilize them and adversely impact our business. ● We intend to engage with one or more third-party telemedicine companies to provide physicians to evaluate patients and, if clinically indicated, refer the patient (including to our Lucid Test Centers or to a #CheckYourFoodTube Precancer Testing Event), to undergo EsoCheck specimen collection for EsoGuard testing. Telemedicine is subject to numerous federal and state regulations and faces particularly intense scrutiny by these regulators. If we fail to comply with federal healthcare regulations, we could face substantial penalties, sanctions, fines or prosecution and our business, operations and financial condition could be adversely affected. ● Many aspects of our business, beyond the specific elements described above, are subject to complex, intertwined, costly and/or burdensome federal health care laws and regulations which may open to interpretation and be subject to varying levels of discretionary enforcement. If we fail to comply with these laws and regulations, we could face substantial penalties and our business, operations and financial condition could be adversely affected. ● The regulations that govern pricing and reimbursement for new products vary widely from country to country, and may adversely affect the pricing, coverage and reimbursement rates of our products in other countries. 18 ● Due to billing complexities in the diagnostic and laboratory service industry, we may not be able to collect payment for the EsoGuard tests we perform. ● Healthcare reform measures, including those targeting Medicare or Medicaid, could hinder or prevent our products’ commercial success. ● Our medical products may in the future be subject to product recalls that could harm our reputation, business, and financial results. ● If our medical products cause or contribute to a death or a serious injury, or malfunction in certain ways, we will be subject to medical device reporting regulations, which can result in voluntary corrective actions or agency enforcement actions. ● Product liability lawsuits against us could cause us to incur substantial liabilities and to limit commercialization of our products. ● Compliance with the HIPAA security, privacy and breach notification regulations may increase our costs. Risks Associated with Our Intellectual Property and Technology Infrastructure ● We may not be able to protect or enforce the intellectual property rights for the technology used in, or expected to be used in, our products, which could impair our competitive position. ● We may be subject to intellectual property infringement claims by third parties which could be costly to defend, divert management’s attention and resources, and may result in liability. ● Competitors may violate the intellectual property rights for the technology used in, or expected to be used in, our products, and we may bring litigation to protect and enforce our intellectual property rights, which may result in substantial expense and may divert our attention from implementing our business strategy. ● Failure in our information technology systems could significantly disrupt our operations and our research and development efforts, which could adversely impact our revenues, as well as our research, development and commercialization efforts. ● Our internal computer systems, or those used by our third-party research institution collaborators, vendors or other contractors or consultants, may suffer security breaches. Risks Associated with Our Relationship with PAVmed ● PAVmed holds more voting stock than any of our other shareholders and thus it (or any successor to its stake in the Company), may have significant influence over certain actions requiring a stockholder vote. ● As a result of the exercise by the holder of PAVmed’s convertible debt and preferred stock of its rights under the agreements governing those instruments, such holder could acquire voting control of the Company. ● Certain conflicts of interest may arise between us and our affiliated companies, including PAVmed, and in some cases we have waived certain rights with respect thereto. ● Our ability to operate our business effectively may suffer if the MSA with PAVmed is insufficient to meet our needs or if, upon the termination of the MSA, we do not cost-effectively establish our own fully functional financial, administrative, operational and other support systems in order to operate as a stand-alone company. ● Any disputes that arise between us and PAVmed with respect to our past and ongoing relationships could harm our business operations. Risks Associated with Ownership of Our Common Stock ● If securities or industry analysts do not publish research, or publish inaccurate or unfavorable research, about our business, our stock price and trading volume could decline. ● Nasdaq may in the future delist our common stock, which could limit investors’ ability to make transactions in our securities and subject us to additional trading restrictions. ● Our stock price may be volatile, and holders of our common stock could incur substantial losses. ● We do not intend to pay any dividends on our common stock at this time. ● We incur significant costs as a result of operating as a public company, and our management will be required to devote substantial time to compliance initiatives. ● If we fail to establish and maintain proper and effective internal control over financial reporting, investors may lose confidence in the accuracy and completeness of our financial reports and the market price of our common stock could decline significantly. ● We are subject to evolving corporate governance and public disclosure expectations and regulations that impact compliance costs and risks of noncompliance. ● We are an “emerging growth company,” and we cannot be certain if the reduced reporting requirements applicable to emerging growth companies will make our common stock less attractive to investors. ● Provisions in our corporate charter documents and under Delaware law could make an acquisition of us more difficult and may prevent attempts by our stockholders to replace or remove our current management. ● Our charter provides, subject to limited exceptions, that the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware will be the sole and exclusive forum for certain stockholder litigation matters, which could limit our stockholders’ ability to obtain a favorable judicial forum for disputes with us or our directors, officers, employees or stockholders. 19 Risks Associated with Our Financial Condition We have incurred operating losses since our inception and may not be able to achieve profitability. We have incurred net losses since our inception. For the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, we had a net loss of $45.5 million and $52.7 million, respectively. Our ability to generate sufficient revenue from any of our products in development, and to transition to profitability and generate consistent positive cash flows is dependent upon factors that may be outside of our control. We expect that our operating expenses will continue to increase as we continue to develop, pursue regulatory clearance or approval for and commercialize our products, build our manufacturing, sales and other commercial infrastructure, and incur additional operational and reporting costs associated with being a public company. As a result, we expect to continue to incur operating losses for the foreseeable future. We are subject to all of the risks and uncertainties typically faced by a medical device and diagnostic company devoting substantially all its efforts to the commercialization of its initial products and services and ongoing research and development activities and clinical trials. We have concluded there is substantial doubt of our ability to continue as a going concern and our independent registered public accounting firm’s report on our financial statements contains an explanatory paragraph describing our ability to continue as a going concern. In our December 31, 2024 consolidated financial statements, we have concluded and stated our recurring losses from operations, recurring cash flows used in operations and the requirement we raise additional capital in order to fund our ongoing operations beyond March 2026 raise substantial doubt regarding our ability to continue as a going concern. Additionally, our independent registered public accounting firm’s report on our consolidated financial statements includes an explanatory paragraph expressing substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern. Our plans to address this going concern risk include pursuing further financings in addition to the recently completed offering of our Registered Direct Offering (in which we realized net proceeds of approximately $14.5 million) and pursuing additional offerings of debt and/or equity securities. The consolidated financial statements do not include any adjustments that might result from our inability to consummate such offerings or our ability to continue as a going concern. Moreover, there is no assurance if we consummate additional offerings, we will raise sufficient proceeds in such offerings to pay our financial obligations as they become due. These factors raise substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern. To raise capital, we have issued a significant amount of convertible securities under which we expect to issue a correspondingly significant amount of shares of our common stock upon conversion thereof. In addition, we may issue shares of our capital stock or debt securities in the future in order to raise capital to fund our operations. All of the foregoing would dilute the equity interest of our stockholders and might cause a change in control of our ownership. Our certificate of incorporation authorizes the issuance of up to 300,000,000 shares of common stock, par value $.001 per share, and 20,000,000 shares of preferred stock, par value $.001 per share. There are 209,246,149 authorized but unissued shares of our common stock available for issuance as of March 20, 2025 (inclusive of granted but unvested restricted stock awards granted as of each such date under the Lucid Diagnostics 2018 Long-Term Incentive Equity Plan). In 2024, we issued shares of Series B Preferred Stock and Series B-1 Preferred Stock that, in accordance with the terms thereof, as of March 20, 2025 could be converted into, in the aggregate, up to 62,332,498 shares of our common stock (which amount includes all future dividends that may be potentially payable in shares of our common stock). As of March 20, 2025, 21,975,000 shares of our common stock were issuable under the 2024 Convertible Notes, assuming the noteholders elected to convert the notes in full on such date at the fixed conversion price of $1.00 per share (based on $21.975 million in aggregate principal amount outstanding as of such date and no accrued and unpaid interest thereon). The number of shares of our common stock to be issued under the 2024 Convertible Notes may be substantially greater than this amount because (i) in the event of certain issuances of additional securities by the Company at a price per share less than the then applicable conversion price, such conversion price may be adjusted to such lower price per share, and (ii) the holders may elect that we make interest payments in shares of our common stock, and in such event the number of shares to be issued will be determined based on the then current market price. In August 2024, we entered into an ninth amendment to the management services agreement with PAVmed (the “MSA”), pursuant to which PAVmed may elect to receive payment of the monthly fee under the management services agreement in cash or in shares of our common stock valued at a price based on the current market price, subject to a floor price and a maximum number of shares. Under the amendment, the monthly fee due from the Company to PAVmed was increased from $0.83 million to $1.05 million. In accordance with the MSA and the PBERA, on January 26, 2024, PAVmed elected to receive payment of $4.675 million of fees and reimbursements accrued under the MSA and the PBERA through the issuance of 3,331,771 shares of the Company’s common stock. To the extent PAVmed elects for us to satisfy our obligations under the MSA and PBERA in shares of our common stock in the future, the interest of other shareholders of the Company would be diluted. Currently, under the terms of its outstanding convertible debt, PAVmed is required to elect to receive such payments in cash. Furthermore, we have issued and expect to continue to issue equity awards, including stock options, under our 2018 Long-Term Incentive Equity Plan (the “Lucid Diagnostics Inc. 2018 Equity Plan”) and our Employee Stock Purchase Plan (the “Lucid Diagnostics Inc. ESPP”). In addition, in March 2022, we entered into a committed equity facility with an affiliate of Cantor. Under the terms of the facility, Cantor has committed to purchase up to $50 million in shares of our common shares stock from time to time at the our request (although this facility terminates on August 1, 2025, which is the first of the month following the 36-month anniversary of the effective date of the registration statement for the same). In November 2022, we also entered into an “at-the-market offering” for up to $6.5 million of our common stock that may be offered and sold under a Controlled Equity Offering Agreement between us and Cantor (although effective as of March 4, 2025, the Company terminated the prospectus supplement for this offering and as a result, the Company will not make any sales of common stock in this offering unless and until a new prospectus or prospectus supplement is filed). Also in November 2022, we entered into the PBERA with PAVmed, pursuant to which PAVmed will continue to pay certain payroll and benefit-related expenses on our behalf and we will reimburse PAVmed, in cash or, subject to approval by each of our boards of directors, in shares of our common stock valued at a price based on the current market price, subject to a floor price and a maximum number of shares. 20 In addition, we may issue a substantial number of additional shares of our common stock or preferred stock or incur indebtedness, or issue or incur a combination of common and preferred stock and indebtedness, to raise additional funds or in connection with any strategic acquisition or as compensation to our officers, directors, employees and consultants or to fund investments in our current operations. The issuance of additional shares of our common stock or any number of shares of our preferred stock, and the availability for sale of such shares in the public markets: ● may significantly dilute the equity interest of our current investors; ● may subordinate the rights of holders of common stock if preferred stock is issued with rights senior to those afforded to our common stockholders; ● may cause a change in control if a substantial number of our shares of common stock are issued, which may affect, among other things, our ability to use our net operating loss carryforwards, if any, and most likely also result in the resignation or removal of some or all of our present officers and directors; and ● may adversely affect prevailing market prices for our common stock. Similarly, if we incur indebtedness, it could result in: ● default and foreclosure on our assets if our operating revenues are insufficient to pay our debt obligations and we are not able to refinance such obligations; ● acceleration of our obligations to repay the indebtedness even if we have made all principal and interest payments when due if the debt security contains covenants that require the maintenance of certain financial ratios or reserves, and any such covenant is breached without a waiver or renegotiation of that covenant; ● our immediate payment of all principal and accrued interest, if any, if the debt security is payable on demand and a demand is made; ● our inability to obtain additional financing, if necessary, if the debt security contains covenants restricting our ability to obtain additional financing while such security is outstanding; and ● our inability to conduct acquisitions, joint ventures or similar arrangements if the debt security contains covenants restricting such transactions or the funding thereof or requiring prior approval of the debt holders. We expect to need additional capital funding, which may be compounded by our obligations to our parent company, PAVmed, which requires its own additional capital funding. Our future capital requirements depend on many factors, including our research, development, and sales and marketing activities. We intend to continue to make investments to support our business growth. Because we have not generated significant revenue or cash flow to date, and despite our recently having raised net proceeds of approximately $14.5 million in connection with our consummation in February 2025 of a registered direct offering, and $18.3 million in connection with the issuance in November 2024 of the 2024 Convertible Notes, we may require additional funds to: ● continue our research and development including existing and new clinical trials; ● fund our operations; ● protect our intellectual property rights or defend, in litigation or otherwise, any claims that we infringe third-party patents or other intellectual property rights; ● manufacture and distribute our products; and ● promote market acceptance of our products. Our need for additional funds may be affected by: ● the cost and timing of expanding our sales, marketing and distribution capabilities; ● the effect of competing technological and market developments; and ● the extent to which we acquire or invest in businesses, products and technologies, although we currently have no commitments or agreements relating to any of these types of transactions. Under our existing management services agreement and payroll and benefit expense reimbursement agreement with PAVmed, PAVmed may determine the form and timing of our satisfaction of our obligations under such agreements. To the extent PAVmed elects for this obligation to be paid in cash (which it is currently required to do under the terms of its convertible debt), that would increase our need to raise additional capital. In this regard, because of the challenges PAVmed has faced in terms of raising capital itself, PAVmed has become highly dependent on us to fund its operations, primarily through electing for the payment in cash by us of our obligations under our management services agreement with PAVmed. 21 Debt or preferred stock financing, if available, may involve covenants restricting our operations or our ability to incur additional debt or issue additional preferred stock, and may contain other terms that are not favorable to us or our stockholders. Additional equity financing may result in substantial dilution to our existing stockholders. If we do not have, or are not able to obtain, sufficient funds, we may have to delay product development initiatives or license to third parties the rights to commercialize products or technologies that we would otherwise seek to market. We also may have to reduce manufacturing, distribution, marketing, customer support or other resources devoted to our products. Our quarterly operating results could be subject to significant fluctuation, which could increase the volatility of our stock price and cause losses to our stockholders. Our results of operations, including our revenue and profits, assuming we are able to successfully commercialize the EsoGuard and EsoCheck products, may fluctuate significantly, depending on a variety of factors, including the following: ● our success in marketing and selling, and changes in demand for, our products, and the level of reimbursement and collection obtained for our products; ● our success in collecting payments from third-party payors, patients and collaborative partners, variation in the timing of these payments and recognition of these payments as revenues; ● the pricing of our products, including potential changes in CMS reimbursement rates or other reimbursement rates; ● circumstances affecting our ability to provide our products, including weather events, supply shortages, or regulatory or other circumstances that adversely affect our ability to manufacture our products or process tests in our clinical laboratory; ● fluctuations in the amount and timing of our selling and marketing costs and our ability to manage costs and expenses and effectively implement our business; and ● our research and development activities, including the timing of costly clinical trials. Servicing our indebtedness may require a significant amount of cash, and the restrictive covenants contained in our indebtedness could adversely affect our business plan, liquidity, financial condition, and results of operations. We may be required to repay or redeem at maturity in 2029 (or sooner, upon the occurrence of certain change of control transactions or an event of default), or to pay interest on, the 2024 Convertible Notes or any future permitted indebtedness incurred by us or our subsidiaries, in cash. Our ability to make payments of the principal of, to pay interest on, or to redeem our indebtedness in cash, depends on our future performance, which is subject to economic, financial, competitive and other factors beyond our control. We have not generated material revenue from operations to date, and our business may not generate cash flow from operations in the future sufficient to service our indebtedness and make necessary capital expenditures. In addition, the 2024 Convertible Notes contain, and any future indebtedness may contain, restrictive covenants, including financial covenants. These payment obligations and covenants could have important consequences on our business. In particular, they could: ● require us to dedicate a substantial portion of our cash flow from operations to payments on our indebtedness; ● limit, among other things, our ability to borrow additional funds and otherwise raise additional capital, and our ability to conduct acquisitions, joint, ventures or similar arrangements, as a result of our obligations to make such payments and comply with the restrictive covenants in the indebtedness; ● limit our flexibility in planning for, or reacting to, changes in our businesses and the industries in which we operate; ● increase our vulnerability to general adverse economic and industry conditions; and ● place us at a competitive disadvantage compared to our competitors that have lower fixed costs. The debt service requirements of any other permitted indebtedness we incur or issue in the future, as well as the restrictive covenants contained in the governing documents for any such indebtedness, could intensify these risks. If we are unable to make the required cash payments, there could be a default under one or more of the instruments governing our indebtedness. Any such default or acceleration may further result in an event of default and acceleration of our other indebtedness. In such event, or if a default otherwise occurs under our indebtedness, including as a result of our failure to comply with the financial or other covenants contained therein, the holders of our indebtedness could require us to immediately repay the outstanding principal and interest on such indebtedness in cash, in some cases subject to a premium. Furthermore, the holders of our secured indebtedness could foreclose on their security interests in our assets. If we are required to make payments under our indebtedness in cash and are unable to generate sufficient cash flow from operations, we may be required to sell assets, or we may seek to refinance the remaining balance, by either refinancing with the holder of the indebtedness, by raising sufficient funds through a sale of equity or debt securities or by obtaining a credit facility. No assurances can be given that we will be successful in making the required payments under our indebtedness, or in refinancing our obligations on favorable terms, or at all. Our ability to refinance our indebtedness will depend on the capital markets and our financial condition at such time. A failure to refinance could have a material adverse effect on our liquidity, financial position, and results of operations. Should we refinance, it could be dilutive to shareholders or impose onerous terms on us. 22 Risks Associated with Our Business Since we have a limited operating history, and have not generated any significant revenues to date, you will have little basis upon which to evaluate our ability to achieve our business objective. Since we have a limited operating history, and have not generated any significant revenues, you will have little basis upon which to evaluate our ability to achieve our business objective. We are subject to all of the problems, expenses, delays and other risks inherent in any new business, as well as problems inherent in establishing name recognition and business reputation. The markets in which we operate are attractive and other companies or institutions may develop and market novel or improved technologies, which may make the EsoGuard or EsoCheck technologies less competitive or obsolete. Given the large market opportunity for esophageal precancer testing we may face multiple competitors in the future, some of which possess significantly greater financial and other resources and development capabilities than us. Our EsoGuard test may face competition from new biomarkers also designed to detect esophageal precancer and conditions along the BE-EAC spectrum. Cyted, a UK-based medical technology firm with a diagnostic platform to detect BE has announced that it is seeking capital to fund expansion into the U.S. market. The Mayo Clinic and Exact Sciences Inc. (Nasdaq: EXAS) have published preliminary data on biomarkers designed to detect esophageal precancer and have publicly expressed a commitment to advancing them to commercialization. Investigators at Johns Hopkins University associated with a privately held firm called Previse have published limited data on methylation biomarkers for BE. Of note, both groups used the EsophaCap “sponge-on-a-string” cell collection device. Other manufacturers have developed noninvasive esophageal cell collection devices most notably “sponge-on-a-string” devices which may compete with EsoCheck. One such device, Cytosponge, previously marketed by in the U.S. by Medtronic Inc. (NYSE: MDT), which is similar to EsophaCap, the device we acquired in our acquisition of CapNostics LLC and is utilized almost exclusively for clinical research, is a spherical mesh sponge encapsulated in soluble gelatin that dissolves in the stomach. The expanded sponge brushes the lining of the esophagus as it is withdrawn and retrieved. EndoSign, commercialized by Cyted, and much like Cytosponge and our own EsophaCap before it, is a small mesh sponge within a soluble gelatin capsule that needs to reside in the stomach for some time until it fully dissolves and then is pulled thru the targeted region brushing the lining of the esophagus and then later retrieved. Although, unlike EsoCheck, these devices do not provide anatomic targeting nor protect their sample from dilution and contamination during device withdrawal, future biomarkers may have sufficient sensitivity to detect BE-EAC despite such dilution and contamination. Manufacturers may also be developing new tools that have not yet been announced that provide noninvasive esophageal cell sampling with the same or better protection from dilution and contamination as EsoCheck. Several well-capitalized companies are developing “liquid biopsy” tests for early cancer detection based on circulating tumor DNA. Although none of these tests yet purport to detect early precancer in the bloodstream, technological advances could result in sufficient sensitivity to do so generally and for conditions along the BE-EAC spectrum. Such advances could put EsoGuard and EsoCheck at a significant competitive disadvantage in the esophageal precancer testing market as it would be logistically simpler to send the patient for a routine blood draw instead of a specialized office procedure like EsoCheck, and patients may prefer such a blood draw over even a noninvasive procedure such as EsoCheck. Additional, still unproven, technologies with the potential to compete with EsoGuard and EsoCheck in the future, include breath tests and oral tests which may be capable of identifying the presence of BE. For example, there is early data to suggest that an “electric nose” device which measures volatile organic compounds (VOCs) developed by The eNose Company, based in the Netherlands, may be able to identify patients with BE. Preliminary published data from Columbia University School of Medicine found that differences in the oral bacterial microbiome, obtained with a simple saliva sample or oral swab, may correlate with the presence of BE. Although there can be no assurance that we will pursue the development of any products other than EsoGuard and EsoCheck, if we seek to develop other products, we may need to compete with a broad range of organizations in the U.S. and other countries that are engaged in the development, production and commercialization of diagnostic products and services. These competitors include biotechnology, diagnostic and other life science companies; academic and scientific institutions, governmental agencies, and public and private research organizations. 23 We may be unable to compete effectively against our competitors either because their products and services are superior or more cost efficient, or because they have access to greater resources than us. Our potential competitors may have substantially greater financial, marketing, sales, distribution, manufacturing, and technological resources. These competitors may also have broader product lines and greater name recognition than we do. Many of these competitors will have obtained FDA or other regulatory clearances or approvals, and patent protection, for their products, or are in the process of seeking such clearances, approvals, and protection. Certain of our potential competitors may commercialize their products in advance of our products. In addition, our competitors may make technical advances that render our products obsolete. We may be unable to respond to such technical advances, especially given our focus on the EsoGuard and EsoCheck technology. Although there can be no assurance that we will pursue the development of any products other than EsoGuard and EsoCheck, even if we do develop new marketable products or services, our current and future competitors may develop products and services that are more commercially attractive than ours, and they may bring those products and services to market earlier or more effectively than us. We expect to derive substantially all of our revenues from the EsoGuard and EsoCheck products. Although we may develop additional products based on the technology underlying our EsoGuard and EsoCheck products, or other related technologies we develop, license, or acquire, we presently expect to derive substantially all of our revenues from sales of our EsoGuard and EsoCheck products. As such, any factor adversely affecting sales of our products, including the product development and release cycles, regulatory issues, intellectual property rights issues, market acceptance, product competition, performance and reliability, reputation, price competition and economic and market conditions, and the other factors discussed in this filing, could adversely affect our business prospects, financial condition and results of operations, and could threaten the viability of our business. We are highly dependent on our license agreement with CWRU, the termination of which would prevent us from commercializing our products, and which imposes significant obligations on us. We are highly dependent on the intellectual property licensed from CWRU, pursuant to which we license the technology underlying our EsoGuard and EsoCheck products. Other products or services we may develop also may rely on the same technology. In the event that we default in the payment of any amount when due under the License Agreement, and such amount is not paid within 30 days of notice of nonpayment, CWRU may terminate the exclusivity of the license or terminate the License Agreement in full. Furthermore, if we breach the agreement, and we do not cure such breach within the applicable time period, in addition to seeking damages, CWRU could terminate the License Agreement. Any termination of the License Agreement resulting in the loss of the licensed rights would prevent us from marketing and selling the EsoGuard and EsoCheck products and any other products or services we may develop based on the same underlying technology. Any termination of the exclusivity of the license could damage our competitive position within the marketplace. In addition, disputes may also arise between us and CWRU regarding the License Agreement. If any such dispute results in an impairment of our ability to use the intellectual property, we may be unable to commercialize the EsoGuard and EsoCheck products and any other product or service we may develop based on the same underlying technology. Accordingly, any such termination or dispute could threaten the viability of our business. 24 Our products may never achieve market acceptance. To date, we have not generated any significant revenues. Our ability to generate revenues from product sales and to achieve profitability will depend upon our ability to successfully commercialize the EsoGuard and EsoCheck products and any other products, tests or services we develop. Because we have just begun to offer our products, tests or services for sale, we have no basis to predict whether any of our products will achieve market acceptance. A number of factors may limit the market acceptance of any of our products, including: ● the effectiveness, reliability and safety of our products, including any potential side effects, and the other competitive features of our products, including price, as compared to alternatives; ● the rate of adoption of our products by hospitals, doctors and nurses and acceptance by the health care community, and the ease of the ordering process for doctors; ● guidelines and other recommendations from medical societies and other similar organizations relating to screening for, monitoring, diagnosing and treating esophageal precancer and cancer or other medical conditions for which our products are used; ● the product labeling or product inserts required by regulatory authorities for each of our products; ● the availability and amount of insurance or other third-party reimbursement, such as Medicare, for patients using our products; ● the extent and success of our marketing efforts and those of our collaborators; ● unfavorable publicity concerning our products or similar products; and ● in the case of FDA PMA approval of the EsoGuard combined with EsoCheck as an IVD device, and in the case of any other products or services we may develop in the future, the timing of regulatory approvals of our products and market entry compared to competitive products. The sizes of the markets for our current and future products have not been established with precision, and may be smaller than we estimate. Our estimates of the annual total addressable markets for our current products are based on a number of internal and third-party estimates, including, without limitation, the number of patients with esophageal cancer and precancer, the number of individuals who are at a higher risk for developing cancer, and the assumed prices at which we can sell tests for markets that have not been established. While we believe our assumptions and the data underlying our estimates are reasonable, these assumptions and estimates may not be correct and the conditions supporting our assumptions or estimates may change at any time, thereby reducing the predictive accuracy of these underlying factors. As a result, our estimates of the annual total addressable market for our current or future products may prove to be incorrect. If the actual number of patients who would benefit from our products, the price at which we can sell our products, or the annual total addressable market for our products is smaller than we have estimated, it may impair our sales growth and have an adverse impact on our business. Recommendations in published clinical practice guidelines issued by various organizations, including professional societies and federal agencies may significantly affect payors’ willingness to cover, and physicians’ willingness to prescribe, our products and services. Long-term adoption of our products as well as payment and coverage for them may depend on their recommendation in clinical practice guidelines. These include professional society guidelines published by gastroenterology specialty societies, such as the American College of Gastroenterology (ACG), the American Gastroenterological Association (AGA), and the American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy (ASGE), internal medicine and family practice societies such as the American College of Physicians (ACP) and American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP), and oncology societies such as the American Cancer Society (ACS). These also include federal agencies and federally funded affiliates such as the U.S. Preventative Services Task Force (“USPSTF”) and the Agency for Healthcare Research & Quality (“AHRQ”). The recommendations in these clinical practice guidelines may shape payors’ coverage decisions. The USPSTF, a panel of primary care physicians and epidemiologists and other national experts funded by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ AHRQ, makes influential recommendations on clinical preventative services. We may seek a USPSTF recommendation in the future. The process of USPSTF recommendation development is lengthy, requires high quality supporting evidence for a positive recommendation, and the outcome of any USPSTF process is uncertain. We or our third-party manufacturers may not have the manufacturing and processing capacity to meet the production requirements of consumer demand or clinical testing in a timely manner. Our capacity to conduct clinical trials and commercialize our products will depend in part on our ability to manufacture or provide our products on a large scale, at a competitive cost and in accordance with regulatory requirements. We must establish and maintain a commercial scale manufacturing process for all of our products to complete clinical trials. We or our third-party manufacturers may encounter difficulties with these processes at any time that could result in delays in clinical trials, regulatory submissions or the commercialization of products. 25 For some of our products, we or our third-party manufacturers will need to have sufficient production and processing capacity in order to conduct human clinical trials, to produce products for commercial sale at an acceptable cost. We have limited experience in large-scale product manufacturing, nor do we have the resources or facilities to manufacture most of our products on a commercial scale. We cannot guarantee that we or our third-party manufacturers will be able to increase capacity in a timely or cost-effective manner, or at all. Initially, we will not directly manufacture our products and will rely on third parties to do so for us. If our manufacturing and distribution agreements are not satisfactory, we may not be able to develop or commercialize products as planned. In addition, we may not be able to contract with third parties to manufacture our products in an economical manner. Furthermore, third-party manufacturers may not adequately perform their obligations, may delay clinical development or submission of products for regulatory approval or otherwise may impair our competitive position. We may not be able to enter into or maintain relationships with manufacturers that comply with good manufacturing practices. If a product manufacturer fails to comply with good manufacturing practices, we could experience significant time delays or we may be unable to commercialize or continue to market the products. Changes in our manufacturers could require costly new product testing and facility compliance inspections. In the United States, failure to comply with good manufacturing practices or other applicable legal requirements can lead to federal seizure of violative products, injunctive actions brought by the federal government, and potential criminal and civil liability on the part of a company and its officers and employees. Because of these and other factors, we may not be able to replace our manufacturing capacity quickly or efficiently in the event that our manufacturers are unable to manufacture our products at one or more of their facilities. As a result, the sales and marketing of our products could be delayed or we could be forced to develop our own manufacturing capacity, which could require substantial additional funds and personnel and compliance with extensive regulations. The manufacturing processes for our products have not yet been tested at commercial levels, and it may not be possible to manufacture or process these materials in a cost-effective manner. If demand for our EsoGuard test grows, we may lack adequate facility space and capabilities to meet increased processing requirements. Moreover, if these or any future facilities or their equipment were damaged or destroyed, or if we experience a significant disruption in our commercial clinical laboratory operations for any reason, our ability to continue to operate our business could be materially harmed. We currently have adequate capacity to process EsoGuard tests, based on current test volumes. If demand for the EsoGuard test outstrips this capacity, and we fail to add additional equipment and staff, or complete, or timely complete, an expansion of our available laboratory facilities, it may significantly delay our EsoGuard processing times and limit the volume of EsoGuard tests we can process, which may adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operation. In addition, our financial condition may be adversely affected if they are unable to complete these expansion projects on budget and otherwise on terms and conditions acceptable to us. Finally, our financial condition will be adversely affected if demand for our products and services does not materialize in line with our current expectations and if, as a result, we end up building excess capacity that does not yield a reasonable return on our investment. If our present, or any future, laboratory facilities were to be damaged, destroyed or otherwise unable to operate, whether due to fire, floods, storms, tornadoes, other inclement weather events or natural disasters, employee malfeasance, terrorist acts, power outages, or otherwise, our business could be severely disrupted. We may not be able to perform our EsoGuard test or generate test reports as promptly as patients and healthcare providers require or expect, or possibly not at all. If we are unable to perform our EsoGuard test or generate test reports within a timeframe that meets patient and healthcare provider expectations, our business, financial results and reputation could be materially harmed. We currently maintain insurance against damage to our property and equipment and against business interruption, subject to deductibles and other limitations. If we have underestimated our insurance needs with respect to an interruption, or if an interruption is not subject to coverage under our insurance policies, we may not be able to cover our losses. Our results of operations can be adversely affected by labor shortages, turnover, and labor cost increases. Labor is a significant component of operating our business. A number of factors may adversely affect the labor force available to us or increase labor costs, including high employment levels, federal unemployment subsidies, increased wages offered by other employers, vaccine mandates and other government regulations and our responses thereto. As more employers offer remote work, we may have more difficulty recruiting for jobs that require on-site attendance, such as certain clinical laboratory and sales roles. Although we have not experienced any material labor shortage to date, a sustained labor shortage or increased turnover rates within our employee base could lead to increased costs, such as increased overtime or financial incentives to meet demand and increased wage rates to attract and retain employees, and could negatively affect our ability to efficiently operate our clinical laboratories and overall business. If we are unable to hire and retain employees capable of performing at a high level, or if mitigating measures we may take to respond to a decrease in labor availability have unintended negative effects, our business could be adversely affected. 26 Additionally, the operations of our vendors and partners could also suffer from labor shortages, turnover, and labor cost increases which could result in supply chain disruptions and increases in the costs of the products and services we purchase, each of which could adversely affect our operations. We expect to rely on courier delivery services to transport EsoCheck devices and EsoGuard specimen kits to physicians and other medical professionals and samples back to laboratory facilities for analysis. If these delivery services are disrupted or become prohibitively expensive, customer satisfaction and our business could be negatively impacted. In most cases, we expect to ship EsoCheck devices and EsoGuard specimen kits to physicians and have the physician’s office ship samples by air express courier delivery service to our CLIA-certified laboratory for EsoGuard testing. Disruptions in delivery service, whether due to bad weather, natural disaster, labor disruptions, terrorist acts or threats, or for other reasons, can adversely affect customer satisfaction, specimen quality and our ability to provide our services on a timely basis. If the courier delivery services that transport EsoCheck devices or EsoGuard specimen kits institute significant price increases, our profitability would be negatively affected and we may need to identify alternative delivery methods, if possible, modify our service model, or attempt to raise our pricing, which may not be possible with regard to Medicare claims or commercially practicable with regard to commercial claims. If we attempt to bring any other products or services to market in addition to the EsoGuard test and EsoCheck device, we likely will be required to make significant investments in research and development, which ultimately may prove unsuccessful. Our future performance may be affected by the success of products we have not yet developed, licensed, acquired. Although there can be no assurance that we will pursue the development of any products or services other than the EsoGuard test and EsoCheck device, we may develop additional products or services based on the same underlying technologies or other technologies we develop, license, or acquire. If we attempt to bring any other such products or services to market, we likely will incur significant expenses on research and development efforts, which ultimately may prove unsuccessful. Our ability to be successful will be totally dependent upon the efforts of our key personnel. Our ability to successfully carry out our business plan is dependent upon the efforts of our key personnel. We cannot assure you that any of our key personnel will remain with us for the immediate or foreseeable future. The unexpected loss of the services of our key personnel could have a detrimental effect on us. We may also be unable to attract and retain additional key personnel in the future. We are limited in shares available for issuance under our long-term incentive plan,even taking into account the shareholder-approved annual increases, which could limit our ability to attract and retain key personnel. An inability to attract and retain key personnel may impact our ability to continue and grow our operations. Our officers and directors have fiduciary obligations to other companies and, accordingly, may have conflicts of interest in determining to which entity a particular business opportunity should be presented. Certain of our officers and directors have fiduciary obligations to other companies engaged in medical device business activities. Accordingly, they may participate in transactions and have obligations that may be in conflict or competition with our business. As a result, a potential business opportunity may be presented by certain members of our board or management team to another entity prior to its presentation to us and we may not be afforded the opportunity to engage in such a transaction. Our business may suffer if we are unable to manage our growth. If we fail to effectively manage our growth, our ability to execute our business strategy could be impaired. Any unanticipated rapid growth of our business may place a strain on our management, operations and financial systems. We need to ensure our existing systems and controls are adequate to support our business and its anticipated growth. Our business, financial condition and results of operations could be adversely affected by the political and economic conditions of the U.S. and the other countries in which we conduct business. Our business, financial condition and results of operations could be adversely affected by the political and economic conditions of the U.S. and the other countries in which we conduct business (although our near-term focus is on our U.S. operations). These factors include: ● varying practices of the regulatory, tax, judicial and administrative bodies in the U.S. and other jurisdictions where we operate; ● potentially burdensome taxation and changes in domestic and foreign tariffs; ● challenges associated with cultural differences, languages and distance; 27 ● differences in clinical practices, needs, products, modalities and preferences; ● longer payment cycles in some countries; ● credit risks of many kinds; ● legal and regulatory differences and restrictions; ● currency exchange fluctuations; ● foreign exchange controls that might prevent us from repatriating cash earned in certain countries; ● political and economic instability and export restrictions; ● variability in sterilization requirements for multi-usage surgical devices; ● potential adverse tax consequences; ● higher cost associated with doing business internationally; ● challenges in implementing educational programs required by our approach to doing business; ● negative economic developments in economies around the world and the instability of governments, including the threat of war, terrorist attacks, epidemic or civil unrest; ● adverse changes in laws and governmental policies, especially those affecting trade and investment; ● health epidemics and /or pandemics, such as the epidemics resulting from the Ebola virus, or the enterovirus, or the avian influenza virus, or the pandemic resulting from a novel strain of a coronavirus designated “Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2” - or “SARS-CoV-2”, which may adversely affect our workforce as well as our local suppliers and customers; ● import or export licensing requirements imposed by governments; ● differing labor standards; ● differing levels of protection of intellectual property; and ● the threat that our operations or property could be subject to nationalization and expropriation. We may engage in acquisitions that are not successful and which could disrupt our business, cause dilution to our stockholders and reduce our financial resources. We may in the future enter into transactions to acquire other businesses, products, services or technologies. Because we have not made any major acquisitions to date, our ability to do so successfully is unproven. If we do identify suitable candidates, we may not be able to make such acquisitions on favorable terms or at all. Any acquisitions we make in the future may not strengthen our products, technologies or businesses or otherwise improve our competitive position, and these transactions may be viewed negatively by investors, healthcare providers, patients and others. For example, we may be unable to timely and effectively integrate the acquired businesses into our business; we may lose key employees; we may encounter potential unknown liabilities and unforeseen risks, including liabilities associated with contracts containing consent and/or other provisions that may be triggered by the acquisitions; we may be unable to realize the anticipated benefits of the acquisitions or do so within the anticipated timeframe; or we may be unable to effectively manage our expanded operations. In addition to the risks outlined above, we may decide to incur debt in connection with an acquisition or issue our common stock or other securities to the stockholders of the acquired company, which would reduce the percentage ownership of our existing stockholders. We cannot predict the number, timing or size of future acquisitions or the effect that any such transactions might have on our operating results. For the foregoing reasons, the market price of our common stock may decline as a result of any acquisitions. Adverse results in material litigation matters could have a material adverse effect upon our business. We may become subject in the ordinary course of business to material legal actions related to, among other things, intellectual property disputes, contract disputes, data and privacy issues, professional liability and employee-related matters. We may also receive inquiries and requests for information from governmental agencies and bodies, including CMS or private payors, requesting comment and/or information on allegations of billing irregularities, billing and pricing arrangements, or privacy practices that are brought to our attention through audits or third parties. Legal actions could result in substantial monetary damages, as well as damage to our reputation with customers and diversion of the attention of our management, which could have a material adverse effect upon its business. Risks Associated with Healthcare Regulation, Billing and Reimbursement, and Product Safety and Effectiveness If private or governmental third-party payors do not maintain reimbursement for our products at adequate reimbursement rates, we may be unable to successfully commercialize our products which would limit or slow our revenue generation and likely have a material adverse effect on our business. Despite our initiative to establish a robust cash-pay program, successful commercialization of our EsoGuard test and EsoCheck device, and of any other product or service we develop, license or acquire depends, in large part, on the availability of adequate reimbursement from private or governmental third-party payors. 28 EsoGuard’s PLA code 0114U has been granted “gapfill” determination through the CMS CLFS process, allowing us to engage directly with Medicare Administrative Contractor (“MAC”) Palmetto GBA, whose Molecular Diagnostics Program (“MolDx”) performs technical assessment of molecular diagnostic tests on behalf of itself and other MACs. Although CMS granted EsoGuard final Medicare payment determination of $1,938.01, effective January 1, 2021, we have not received a final Medicare local coverage determination from MolDx. Most recently, in May 2023, a final Local Coverage Determination (“LCD”) L39256, entitled “ Molecular Testing for Detection of Upper Gastrointestinal Metaplasia, Dysplasia, and Neoplasia ” became effective on the CMS website by MAC Palmetto GBA. (A substantially identical LCD was published by Noridian Healthcare Solutions, the MAC whose geographic jurisdiction covers our CLIA laboratory in Lake Forest, CA.) The LCD outlines criteria for future coverage that MolDX expects upper gastrointestinal precancer and cancer molecular diagnostic tests to meet. These criteria include active GERD with at least two risk factors, as well as evidence of analytic validity, clinical validity, and clinical utility. Although the LCD indicated that it found that no currently existing test has fulfilled all these criteria, it indicated that it will “monitor the evidence and may revise this determination based on the pertinent literature and society recommendations.” In November 2024, we announced that we submitted to MolDx our complete clinical evidence package in support of a request for reconsideration of the non-coverage language in the LCD to secure Medicare coverage for EsoGuard. However, there can be no assurance that MolDx will determine that we meet the criteria for coverage as specified in the LCD. If we are not granted coverage, or if a determination is substantially delayed, that could have a material adverse effect on our ability to commercialize EsoGuard. Commercial third-party payors often rely upon Medicare coverage policy and payment limitations in setting their own reimbursement policies. Third-party payors are increasingly attempting to contain healthcare costs by limiting both coverage and the level of reimbursement for new healthcare products. As a result, there is uncertainty surrounding whether EsoGuard or EsoCheck will be eligible for coverage by third-party payors or, if eligible for coverage, what the reimbursement rates will be. Reimbursement of esophageal precancer and cancer screening by a third-party payor may depend on a number of factors, including a payor’s determination that tests using our technologies are sufficiently sensitive and specific for esophageal cancer and precancer; not experimental or investigational; approved or recommended by the major guidelines organizations; reliable, safe and effective; medically necessary; appropriate for the specific patient; and cost-effective. Coverage determinations and reimbursement rates are also subject to the effects of federal and state coverage mandates and other healthcare regulations and reform initiatives as described below. As noted below, federal and state coverage mandates may be deemed not to apply to EsoGuard and EsoCheck, may be interpreted in a manner unfavorable to us, may be difficult to enforce and are subject to repeal or modification. In addition to the risk of adverse reimbursement decisions, we also may experience material delays in obtaining such reimbursement decisions and payment for our EsoGuard test and EsoCheck device that are beyond our control. Further, there can be no assurance that CMS and other third-party payors who initially decide to cover our products will continue to do so. Coverage determinations and reimbursement rates are subject to change, including as a result of reimbursement rate adjustments under the Protecting Access to Medicare Act of 2014, (“PAMA”) as described below, and we cannot guarantee that even if we initially achieve coverage and adequate reimbursement rates, they will continue to be applicable to our products in the future. Furthermore, it is possible that Medicare or other federal payors that provide reimbursement for our tests may suspend, revoke or discontinue coverage at any time, may require co-payments from patients, or may reduce the reimbursement rates payable to us. If we are unable to obtain favorable decisions from third-party payors, including CMS and managed care organizations, approving reimbursement at adequate levels for our EsoGuard test and EsoCheck device, and any other product or service we may develop, or if coverage is later revoked or reimbursement levels are reduced, our commercial success will be compromised, our ability to raise capital may be restricted and our revenues would be significantly limited. Even where a third-party payor agrees to cover EsoGuard and EsoCheck at an adequate reimbursement rate, other factors may have a significant impact on the actual reimbursement we receive for an EsoGuard test or EsoCheck device from that payor. For example, if we do not have a contract with a given payor, we may be deemed an “out-of-network” provider by that payor, which could result in the payor allocating a portion of the cost of the EsoGuard test or EsoCheck device to the patient, notwithstanding any applicable coverage mandate. We may be unsuccessful in our efforts to enter into, or maintain, a network contract with a given payor, and we expect that our network status with a given payor may change from time to time for a variety of reasons, many of which may be outside our control. To the extent EsoGuard or EsoCheck is out of network for a given payor, physicians may be less likely to prescribe EsoGuard and EsoCheck for their patients and their patients may be less likely to comply with those prescriptions that are written. Also, some payors may require that they give prior authorization for an EsoGuard test or EsoCheck device before they are willing to pay for it or review claims post-service to ensure the service was medically appropriate for specific patients. Prior authorization and other medical management practices may require that we, patients or physicians provide the payor with extensive medical records and other information. Prior authorization and other medical management practices impose a significant additional cost on us, may be difficult to comply with given our position as a laboratory that generally does not have direct access to patient medical records, may make physicians less likely to prescribe EsoGuard and EsoCheck for their patients, and may make patients less likely to comply with physician orders for EsoGuard and EsoCheck, all or any of which may have an adverse effect on our revenues. Payment rates also may vary according to the use of the product and the clinical setting in which it is used, may be based on payments allowed for lower cost products that are already reimbursed and may be incorporated into existing payments for other services. 29 FDA has proposed a policy under which it would phase out its general enforcement discretion approach for LDTs so that IVDs manufactured at a laboratory would generally fall under the same enforcement approach as other IVDs. While we are confident that the proposed policy will not have a material impact on our business, there can be no assurance that will be the case. On May 6, 2024, the FDA issued a final rule aimed at helping to ensure the safety and effectiveness of LDTs. The rule amends the FDA’s regulations to make explicit that IVDs are devices under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FD&C Act) including when the manufacturer of the IVD is a laboratory. Along with this amendment, the FDA is finalizing a policy under which the FDA will provide greater oversight of IVDs offered as LDTs through a phaseout of its general enforcement discretion approach for LDTs over the course of four years, as well as targeted enforcement discretion policies for certain categories of IVDs manufactured by laboratories. The phaseout policy contains the following five stages: ● Stage 1: Beginning on May 6, 2025, which is one year after the publication date of the final LDT rule, FDA will expect compliance with medical device reporting (MDR) requirements, correction and removal reporting requirements, and quality system (QS) requirements regarding complaint files. ● Stage 2: Beginning on May 6, 2026, which is 2 years after the publication date of the final LDT rule, FDA will expect compliance with requirements not covered during other stages of the phaseout policy, including registration and listing requirements, labeling requirements, and investigational use requirements. ● Stage 3: Beginning on May 6, 2027, which is 3 years after the publication date of the final LDT rule, FDA will expect compliance with QS requirements (other than requirements regarding complaint files which are already addressed in stage 1). ● Stage 4: Beginning on November 6, 2027, which is 3½ years after the publication date of the final LDT rule, FDA will expect compliance with premarket review requirements for high-risk IVDs offered as LDTs (IVDs that may be classified into class III or that are subject to licensure under section 351 of the Public Health Service Act), unless a premarket submission has been received by the beginning of this stage in which case FDA intends to continue to exercise enforcement discretion for the pendency of its review. ● Stage 5: Beginning on May 6, 2028, which is 4 years after the publication date of the final LDT rule, FDA will expect compliance with premarket review requirements for moderate-risk and low-risk IVDs offered as LDTs (that require premarket submissions), unless a premarket submission has been received by the beginning of this stage in which case FDA intends to continue to exercise enforcement discretion for the pendency of its review. The FDA also intends to exercise enforcement discretion and generally not enforce some or all applicable requirements for certain categories of IVDs manufactured by a laboratory. The categories of enforcement discretion that are applicable to EsoGuard are summarized in the table below. Category of IVD Stage 1 Stage 2 Stage 3 Stages 4 & 5 (Premarket Review) Currently marketed IVDs offered as LDTs first marketed prior to rule publication date and not modified beyond scope described in preamble Section V.B.3 of preamble Compliance generally expected beginning May 6, 2025 Compliance generally expected beginning May 6, 2026 Compliance with 21 CFR 820.180-820.186 generally expected beginning May 6, 2027; Compliance generally not expected with other QS requirements (except for complaint files) Compliance generally not expected LDTs approved by NYS CLEP Section V.B.2 of preamble Compliance generally expected beginning May 6, 2025 Compliance generally expected beginning May 6, 2026 Compliance generally expected beginning May 6, 2027 Compliance generally not expected As EsoGuard was marketed prior to rule publication and is also NYS CLEP approved, hence, enforcement discretion is applicable for compliance with Stages 4 and 5. We will be implementing compliance with MDR requirements, correction and removal reporting requirements, and quality system (QS) requirements regarding complaint files by March 31, 2025, well before the deadline of May 6, 2025. Gap analysis has been completed and we are expecting our compliance activities to be completed for Stages 2 and 3 before the FDA’s expected timeframes in 2026 and 2027, respectively. We are confident that the proposed final rule will not have a commercial impact as the Company already has a robust QS management platform for medical devices and EsoGuard will be able to easily transition to the platform to fulfill the QS requirements, as required by the FDA. However, there can be no assurance that we will be able to successfully transition the platform to fulfill the QS requirements, as required by FDA, and our failure to do so could have a material impact on our ability to commercialize EsoGuard and on our business as a whole. 30 If we fail to maintain CLIA-certification or otherwise meet the applicable requirements of federal or state law regulating commercial clinical laboratories, such failure could limit or prevent our ability to perform our EsoGuard test, or any other tests which we may develop, license or acquire, affect any payor consideration of such tests, prevent their clearance or approval entirely, and/or interrupt the commercial sale and/or marketing of any such tests, cause us to incur significant expense to remedy this failure and otherwise negatively impact our business. We perform the EsoGuard test in our own CLIA-certified commercial clinical laboratory, and like all clinical laboratories which perform non-research laboratory testing on human samples in the U.S., it is regulated by CMS through CLIA and associated federal regulations set forth in 42 CFR § 493, as well as through other federal and state laws and regulations. Federal CLIA requirements and laws of certain states impose certification requirements for clinical laboratories, establish standards for quality assurance and quality control, among other things. Some state laws restrict laboratory marketing activities, which may adversely affect our ability to market our laboratory services. Clinical laboratories are subject to inspection by regulators, and to sanctions for failing to comply with applicable requirements. Sanctions available under CLIA include prohibiting a laboratory from running tests, requiring a laboratory to implement a corrective plan, and imposing civil monetary penalties. If we fail to maintain CLIA-certification or otherwise meet the applicable requirements of federal or state law, that failure could adversely limit or prevent its ability to perform our EsoGuard test, or any other diagnostic tests which we may develop, license or acquire, affect any payor consideration of such tests, prevent their clearance or approval entirely, and/or interrupt the commercial sale and/or marketing of any such tests, cause us to incur significant expense to remedy this failure and otherwise negatively impact our business. EsoGuard may not be jointly marketed as a combined product with EsoCheck without first securing FDA approval of the combined product as an IVD device. If FDA deems that we are jointly marketing such an IVD product with EsoCheck without FDA approval of the combined product as an IVD device, we would be subject to FDA enforcement action which could limit or halt commercialization of our products, and result in FDA sanctions which could severely impact our business. EsoCheck has received FDA 510(k) clearance permitting us to market it in the U.S. as a cell collection device indicated for use in the collection and retrieval of surface cells of the esophagus in the general population of adults, 22 years of age and older. EsoGuard, on the other hand, has not received FDA approval to be marketed as an IVD device and is being marketed as an LDT. As such we must market EsoGuard and EsoCheck as separate products. Jointly marketing EsoGuard as a combined product with EsoCheck would require us to secure FDA approval of the combined product as an IVD device. If we were to jointly market such products, even inadvertently, without such FDA approval we would be subject to FDA enforcement actions which could result in fines, unanticipated compliance expenditures, recall or seizures of our products, total or partial suspension of production or distribution, restrictions on labeling and promotion, termination of ongoing research, disqualification of data for submission to regulatory authorities, enforcement actions, injunctions and criminal prosecution. Responding to such actions could cause us to incur significant expense, limit or halt commercialization of our products and severely impact our business. Securing FDA approval of EsoGuard as an IVD device, separately or as a combined product with EsoCheck, is a complex process requiring substantial time, commitment of resources and expense without any assurance that FDA will grant such approval. FDA has indicated to us through its pre-submission process that jointly marketing EsoGuard combined with EsoCheck as an IVD device would be subject to PMA premarket approval, the most stringent FDA premarket medical device scientific and regulatory review process, which requires sufficient valid scientific evidence in addition to general and special controls to assure that it is safe and effective for its intended use(s). If we choose, or are required, as a result of changes in LDT regulation, to secure FDA approval of EsoGuard as an IVD device, even if not combined with EsoCheck, we expect we would this require FDA PMA approval. The process of securing FDA PMA approval is complex and requires substantial time, commitment of resources and expense. The process may take many years to complete, and approval may never be obtained. It requires us to demonstrate with substantial evidence, gathered in preclinical and large, complex well-controlled clinical trials, that the planned product is safe and effective for use for as intended. We may not conduct such a trial or may not successfully enroll or complete any such trial, if required. There can be no assurance that FDA will ever permit us to market EsoGuard, used with EsoCheck, as a combined product. Also, any regulatory clearance or approval of a product, once obtained, may be withdrawn. Failure to obtain regulatory approvals in foreign jurisdictions will prevent us from marketing our products internationally. We intend to seek, as resources permit, distribution and marketing partners for one or more of the products we are developing in foreign countries. The approval procedures vary among countries and can involve additional clinical testing, and the time required to obtain approval may differ from that required to obtain FDA approval. Moreover, clinical studies or manufacturing processes conducted in one country may not be accepted by regulatory authorities in other countries. Approval by FDA does not ensure approval by regulatory authorities in other countries, and approval by one or more foreign regulatory authorities does not ensure approval by regulatory authorities in other foreign countries or by FDA. However, a failure or delay in obtaining regulatory approval in one country may have a negative effect on the regulatory process in others. The foreign regulatory approval process may include all of the risks associated with obtaining FDA approval. We may not obtain foreign regulatory approvals on a timely basis, if at all. We may not be able to file for regulatory approvals and even if we file, we may not receive necessary approvals to commercialize our products in any market. 31 Modifications to our cleared or approved products may require new clearances or premarket approvals, or may require us to cease marketing or recall the modified products until clearances are obtained. For any product approved pursuant to a PMA, we are required to seek supplemental approval for many types of changes to the approved product, for which we will need to determine whether a PMA supplement or other regulatory filing is needed or whether the change may be reported via the PMA Annual Report. Similarly, any modification to a 510(k)-cleared device that could significantly affect its safety or effectiveness, or that would constitute a major change in its intended use, design, or manufacture, requires new 510(k) clearance or, possibly, approval of a new PMA. If the FDA requires us to seek approvals or clearances for modifications to our previously approved or cleared products, for which we concluded that new approvals or clearances are unnecessary, we may be required to cease marketing or distribution of our products or to recall the modified product until we obtain the approval or clearance, and we may be subject to significant regulatory fines or penalties. Foreign regulatory regimes may have comparable requirements, which present the same or substantially similar risks. Clinical trials necessary to support regulatory submission will be expensive and will require the enrollment of large numbers of patients, and suitable patients may be difficult to identify and recruit. Delays or failures in our clinical trials will prevent us from expanding our commercial efforts and will adversely affect our business, operating results and prospects. Initiating and completing clinical trials necessary to support regulatory submission will be time-consuming and expensive and their outcome uncertain. Moreover, the results of early clinical trials are not necessarily predictive of future results, and any product we advance into clinical trials may not have favorable results in early or later clinical trials. For example, the results of the studies to date on EsoGuard may not be replicated by any clinical trials undertaken to obtain PMA approval of the use of EsoGuard and EsoCheck together as an IVD device. Conducting successful clinical studies will require the enrollment of large numbers of patients, and suitable patients may be difficult to identify and recruit. Patient enrollment in clinical trials and completion of patient participation and follow-up depend on many factors, including the size of the patient population, the nature of the trial protocol, the attractiveness of, or the discomforts and risks associated with, the treatments received by patients enrolled as subjects, the availability of appropriate clinical trial investigators, support staff, and proximity of patients to clinical sites and ability to comply with the eligibility and exclusion criteria for participation in the clinical trial and patient compliance. For example, patients may be discouraged from enrolling in our clinical trials if the trial protocol requires them to undergo extensive post-treatment procedures or follow-up to assess the safety and effectiveness of our products or if they determine that the treatments received under the trial protocols are not attractive or involve unacceptable risks, discomforts or expenditures. Patients may also not participate in our clinical trials if they choose to participate in contemporaneous clinical trials of competitive products. In addition, patients participating in clinical trials may die before completion of the trial or suffer adverse medical events unrelated to investigational products. Development of sufficient and appropriate clinical protocols to demonstrate safety and efficacy may be required and we may not adequately develop such protocols to support clearance and approval. Further, FDA may require us to submit data on a greater number of patients than it originally anticipated and/or for a longer follow-up period or change the data collection requirements or data analysis for any clinical trials. Delays in patient enrollment or failure of patients to continue to participate in a clinical trial may cause an increase in costs and delays in the approval and attempted commercialization of our products or result in the failure of the clinical trial. FDA may not consider our data adequate to demonstrate safety and efficacy. Such increased costs and delays or failures could adversely affect our business, operating results and prospects. We expect to depend on clinical investigators, medical institutions and contract research organizations to perform the clinical trials. If these parties do not successfully carry out their contractual duties or obligations or meet expected deadlines, or if the quality, completeness or accuracy of the clinical data they obtain is compromised due to the failure to adhere to our clinical protocols or for other reasons, our clinical trials may have to be extended, delayed or terminated. Many of these factors would be beyond our control. We may not be able to enter into replacement arrangements without undue delays or considerable expenditures. If there are delays in testing or approvals as a result of the failure to perform by third parties, our research and development costs would increase, and we may not be able to obtain regulatory clearance or approval for EsoGuard and any other products we may develop. In addition, we may not be able to establish or maintain relationships with these parties on favorable terms, if at all. Each of these outcomes would harm our ability to market EsoGuard and any other products we may develop, license or acquire, or to achieve sustained profitability. 32 The results of our clinical trials may not support our product candidate claims or may result in the discovery of adverse side effects. Even if our clinical trials are completed as planned, it cannot be certain that study results will support product candidate claims or that FDA or foreign regulatory authorities will agree with our conclusions regarding them. Success in pre-clinical evaluation and early clinical trials does not ensure that later clinical trials will be successful, and we cannot be sure that the later trials will replicate the results of prior trials and pre-clinical studies. The clinical trial process may fail to demonstrate that our product candidates are safe and effective for the proposed indicated uses or otherwise influence medical decisions in the manner we need to show to evidence the clinical utility of our product candidates, which could cause us to abandon a product candidate and may delay development of others. Any delay or termination of our clinical trials will delay the filing of our product submissions and, ultimately, our ability to commercialize our product candidates and generate revenues (in particular where evidence of clinical utility is a critical factor to payor’s decisions around reimbursement). It is also possible that patients enrolled in clinical trials will experience adverse side effects that are not currently part of the product candidate’s profile. Our principal ongoing clinical trials are those that relate to EsoGuard. For a summary of the status and certain information concerning the results of those trials, please see above under “ Background and Overview—Clinical Utility and Clinical Trials ”. If our clinical studies do not satisfy providers, payors, patients and others as to the reliability and performance of our EsoGuard test and the EsoCheck device, or any other product or service we may develop and seek to commercialize, we may experience reluctance or refusal on the part of physicians to order, and third-party payors to pay for, such test. Although we have received FDA 510(k) clearance to market EsoCheck, and EsoGuard may be performed in our own CLIA-certified commercial clinical laboratory and marketed as an LDT, if the results of any research and clinical studies conducted by us, including those conducted for the purpose of obtaining FDA approval of the combined EsoGuard and EsoCheck product as an IVD device, and our sales and marketing activities relating to communication of these results, do not convince guidelines organizations, physicians and other healthcare providers, third-party payors and patients that EsoGuard and EsoCheck are safe and effective, we may experience reluctance or refusal on the part of physicians to order, and third-party payors to pay for, EsoGuard or EsoCheck, which could adversely affect our business prospects. EsoCheck and any other products we develop that receive regulatory clearance or approval will be subject to ongoing regulatory obligations and continued regulatory review, which may result in significant additional expense and subject us to penalties if we fail to comply with applicable regulatory requirements. Even after regulatory clearance or approval has been obtained for our products, the cleared or approved product and its manufacturer remain subject to continual review by FDA or non-U.S. regulatory authorities. Our cleared or approved products may be subject to limitations on the indicated uses for which the product may be marketed, as in the case of the FDA 510(k) marketing clearance for our EsoCheck cell collection device. Furthermore, future approvals may contain requirements for potentially costly post-marketing follow-up studies to monitor the safety and efficacy of the approved product. There is a risk that FDA may modify or withdraw the approval of a product if the results of a post-approval study are not satisfactory or are inconsistent with previous studies. We may rely on third parties, such as contract research organizations, medical institutions and clinical investigators to conduct any post-approval studies. We will have limited control over the activities of these third parties and any post-approval studies may be delayed or halted prior to its completion for reasons outside our control. In addition, we and our cleared or approved products will be subject to extensive and ongoing regulatory requirements by FDA and other regulatory authorities with regard to the labeling, packaging, adverse event reporting, storage, advertising, promotion and recordkeeping for our products. We and our contract manufacturers also will be required to comply with current good manufacturing practice (“cGMP”) regulations regarding the manufacture of our products, which include requirements related to quality control and quality assurance as well as the corresponding maintenance of records and documentation. Further, regulatory authorities must approve these manufacturing facilities before they can be used to manufacture medical devices, and these facilities are subject to continual review and periodic inspections by FDA and other regulatory authorities for compliance with cGMP regulations. Operations at these facilities could be interrupted or halted if FDA or other governmental agency deems the findings of such inspections unsatisfactory. Failure to comply with FDA or other regulatory requirements could result in fines, unanticipated compliance expenditures, recall or seizures of our products, total or partial suspension of production or distribution, restrictions on labeling and promotion, termination of ongoing research, disqualification of data for submission to regulatory authorities, enforcement actions, injunctions and criminal prosecution. If we or a third party discover previously unknown problems with a product, such as adverse events of unanticipated severity or frequency, or problems with the facility where the product is manufactured, a regulatory authority may impose restrictions on that product, the manufacturer or us, including requiring recall of the product from the market or suspension of manufacturing. We also may voluntarily recall a product. Any recalls could have an adverse effect on our ability to provide our products, which in turn would adversely affect our financial condition. 33 If we are found to be promoting the use of our devices for unapproved or “off-label” uses or engaging in other noncompliant activities, we may be subject to recalls, seizures, fines, penalties, injunctions, adverse publicity, prosecution, or other adverse actions, resulting in damage to our reputation and business. Our labeling, advertising, promotional materials and user training materials must comply with FDA and other applicable laws and regulations, including the prohibition of the promotion of a medical device for a use that has not been cleared or approved by FDA. Obtaining 510(k) clearance or PMA approval only permits us to promote our products for the uses specifically cleared by FDA. Use of a device outside its cleared or approved indications is known as “off-label” use. Physicians and consumers may use our products off-label because FDA does not restrict or regulate a physician’s choice of treatment within the practice of medicine nor is there oversight on patient use of over-the-counter devices. Although we may request additional cleared indications for our current products, FDA may deny those requests, require additional expensive clinical data to support any additional indications or impose limitations on the intended use of any cleared product as a condition of clearance. Even if regulatory clearance or approval of a product is granted, such clearance or approval may be subject to limitations on the intended uses for which the product may be marketed and reduce our potential to successfully commercialize the product and generate revenue from the product. If FDA determines that our labeling, advertising, promotional materials, or user training materials, or representations made by our personnel, include the promotion of an off-label use for the device, or that we have made false or misleading or inadequately substantiated promotional claims, or claims that could potentially change the regulatory status of the product, the agency could take the position that these materials have misbranded our devices and request that we modify our labeling, advertising, or user training or promotional materials and/or subject us to regulatory or legal enforcement actions, including the issuance of an Untitled Letter or a Warning Letter, injunction, seizure, recall, adverse publicity, civil penalties, criminal penalties, or other adverse actions. It is also possible that other federal, state, or foreign enforcement authorities might take action if they consider our labeling, advertising, promotional, or user training materials to constitute promotion of an unapproved use, which could result in significant fines, penalties, or other adverse actions under other statutory authorities, such as laws prohibiting false claims for reimbursement. In that event, we would be subject to extensive fines and penalties and our reputation could be damaged and adoption of the products would be impaired. Although we intend to refrain from statements that could be considered off-label promotion of our products, FDA or another regulatory agency could disagree and conclude that we have engaged in off-label promotion. In addition, any such off-label use of our products may increase the risk of injury to patients, and, in turn, the risk of product liability claims, and such claims are expensive to defend and could divert our management’s attention and result in substantial damage awards against us. Clinical laboratories and medical diagnostic companies are subject to extensive and frequently changing federal, state, and local laws. We could be subject to significant fines and penalties if we fail (or if our prior unrelated third-party laboratory partner previously failed) to comply with these laws and regulations. As a provider of clinical diagnostic products and services, we are subject (and our prior third-party laboratory partner previously was subject) to extensive and frequently changing federal, state, and local laws and regulations governing various other aspects of our business. In particular, the clinical laboratory industry is subject to significant governmental certification and licensing regulations, as well as federal and state laws regarding: ● test ordering and billing practices; ● marketing, sales and pricing practices; ● health information privacy and security, including the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, or HIPAA, as amended by the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act of 2009, or HITECH, and comparable state laws; ● insurance; ● anti-markup legislation; and ● consumer protection. We are also required to comply with FDA regulations, including with respect to our labeling and promotion activities. In addition, advertising of our tests is subject to regulation by the Federal Trade Commission, (“FTC”) and advertising of laboratory services is regulated by certain state laws. Violation of any FDA requirement could result in enforcement actions, such as seizures, injunctions, civil penalties and criminal prosecutions, and violation of any FTC or state law requirement could result in injunctions and other associated remedies, all of which could have a material adverse effect on our business. Most states also have similar regulatory and enforcement authority for devices. Additionally, most foreign countries have authorities comparable to FDA and processes for obtaining marketing approvals. Obtaining and maintaining these approvals, and complying with all laws and regulations, may subject us to similar risks and delays as those we could experience under FDA, FTC and state regulation. We incur various costs in complying and overseeing compliance with these laws and regulations. 34 Healthcare policy has been a subject of extensive discussion in the executive and legislative branches of the federal and many state governments and healthcare laws and regulations are subject to change. Development of the existing commercialization strategy for our EsoGuard test and EsoCheck device has been based on existing healthcare policies. We cannot predict what additional changes, if any, will be proposed or adopted or the effect that such proposals or adoption may have on our business, financial condition and results of operations. If we or our partners fail to comply with these laws and regulations, we could incur significant fines and penalties and our reputation and prospects could suffer. Additionally, any such partners could be forced to cease offering our products and services in certain jurisdictions, which could materially disrupt our business. We operate Lucid Test Centers where prescribing physicians can send patients for EsoGuard testing, including undergoing specimen collection using EsoCheck. These Lucid Test Centers are subject to federal and state regulations which may be burdensome, costly or difficult to comply with. Failure to comply with these regulations could result in sanctions, fines or other enforcement actions which may be costly, time-consuming and limit our ability to utilize them and adversely impact our business. As part of our commercialization efforts for EsoGuard, we are operating Lucid Test Centers in jurisdictions where a licensed health care professional, employed or contracted by us, will perform the esophageal cell collection procedure using EsoCheck and then package the specimen for transport to our CLIA-certified commercial clinical laboratory. The Lucid Test Centers may be deemed laboratory draw stations or outpatient centers or clinics, which may be subject to state licensure and operating requirements. In addition, states may require personnel performing the specimen collection procedure to be licensed and may require collaboration with or supervision by a physician. The health care professionals may also be subject to malpractice claims. We will need to purchase insurance policies to cover such claims but the coverage limits on such policies may be insufficient to cover any monetary awards for damages granted for such claims. In certain states, our Lucid Test Centers may trigger the corporate practice of medicine doctrine, a general prohibition in some jurisdictions against non-licensed individuals or corporations owning medical practices or employing physicians and other licensed HCPs. In many states, a general business corporation cannot directly employ health care professionals or enter any arrangement where the physicians or the healthcare professional is in any way controlled or directed by the corporation. Complying with these state regulations can be complex, burdensome and costly and we may be unable to do so in certain states, limiting our commercialization efforts and business in those states. The Lucid Test Centers may be subject to additional state regulations relating to the distribution of the collection devices, test orders, patient consents, medical necessity requirements and billing regulations. We have invested heavily in regulatory and compliance infrastructure in an effort to ensure compliance with this regulatory framework, however, we cannot guarantee that we will remain in compliance with these rules at all times. Our failure to comply with these regulations in the operation of these Lucid Test Centers or in managing the personnel interacting with patients at these centers could subject us to sanctions, fines or other enforcement actions. Responding to these actions may be costly and time-consuming and may require us to cease operations at these centers which may limit our commercialization efforts and adversely impact our business. We intend to engage with one or more third-party telemedicine companies to provide physicians to evaluate patients and, if clinically indicated, refer the patient (including to our Lucid Test Centers or to a #CheckYourFoodTube Precancer Testing Event), to undergo EsoCheck specimen collection for EsoGuard testing. Telemedicine is subject to numerous federal and state regulations and faces particularly intense scrutiny by these regulators. If we fail to comply with federal healthcare regulations, we could face substantial penalties, sanctions, fines or prosecution and our business, operations and financial condition could be adversely affected. One element of our growth strategy is to expand EsoGuard commercialization across multiple channels, including by partnership with telemedicine providers. The logistics required to manage a patient’s journey through a telemedicine program, in a manner which is compliant with all applicable regulations, are complex and require very careful coordination between us and our third-party telemedicine and laboratory partners broadly operating within our quality management system. Our activities and the activities of our third-party partners on our behalf within this telemedicine program are subject to numerous federal and state regulations. The telemedicine provider itself may be subject to additional state regulations relating to the corporate practice of medicine, test orders, patient consents, medical necessity requirements and billing regulations. Telemedicine faces particularly intense scrutiny from regulators due to numerous cases of companies failing to operate in this space with a properly functioning regulatory and compliance infrastructure. We cannot guarantee that our personnel or those of our third-party partners will comply with the applicable regulations at all times. If any such personnel fail to comply with regulations, we could face substantial penalties, sanctions, fines or prosecution and our business, operations and financial condition could be adversely affected. 35 Many aspects of our business, beyond the specific elements described above, are subject to complex, intertwined, costly and/or burdensome federal health care laws and regulations which may open to interpretation and be subject to varying levels of discretionary enforcement. If we fail to comply with these laws and regulations, we could face substantial penalties and our business, operations and financial condition could be adversely affected. Even though we do not and do not expect to control referrals of healthcare services or bill directly to Medicare, Medicaid or other third-party payors, certain federal and state healthcare laws and regulations pertaining to fraud and abuse and patients’ rights are and will be applicable to our business. We could be subject to healthcare fraud and abuse and patient privacy regulation by both the federal government and the states in which we conduct our business. The regulations that may affect our ability to operate include, without limitation: ● the federal healthcare program Anti-Kickback Statute, which prohibits, among other things, any person from knowingly and willfully offering, soliciting, receiving, or providing remuneration, directly or indirectly, in exchange for or to induce either the referral of an individual for, or the purchase, order or recommendation of, any good or service for which payment may be made under federal healthcare programs, such as the Medicare and Medicaid programs; ● the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, or “FCPA,” which prohibits payments or the provision of anything of value to foreign officials for the purpose of obtaining or keeping business; ● the federal False Claims Act, or “FCA,” which prohibits, among other things, individuals or entities from knowingly presenting, or causing to be presented, false claims, or knowingly using false statements, to obtain payment from the federal government, and which may apply to entities like us which provide coding and billing advice to customers; ● federal criminal laws that prohibit executing a scheme to defraud any healthcare benefit program or making false statements relating to healthcare matters; ● the federal transparency requirements under the Health Care Reform Law requires manufacturers of drugs, devices, biologics and medical supplies to report to the Department of Health and Human Services information related to physician payments and other transfers of value and physician ownership and investment interests; ● the federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, as amended by the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act, which governs the conduct of certain electronic healthcare transactions and protects the security and privacy of protected health information, and ● state law equivalents of each of the above federal laws, such as anti-kickback and false claims laws which may apply to items or services reimbursed by any third-party payor, including commercial insurers. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (the “PPACA”), among other things, amends the intent requirement of the Federal Anti-Kickback Statute and criminal healthcare fraud statutes. A person or entity no longer needs to have actual knowledge of this statute or specific intent to violate it. In addition, the PPACA provides that the government may assert that a claim including items or services resulting from a violation of the Federal Anti-Kickback Statute constitutes a false or fraudulent claim for purposes of the FCA. In 2018, Congress passed Eliminating Kickbacks in Recovery Act (“EKRA”) as part of the Substance Use-Disorder Prevention that Promotes Opioid Recovery and Treatment for Patients and Communities Act. Similar to the Anti-Kickback Statute, EKRA imposes criminal penalties for knowing or willful payment or offer, or solicitation or receipt, of any remuneration, whether directly or indirectly, overtly or covertly, in cash or in kind, in exchange for the referral or inducement of laboratory testing (among other healthcare services) unless a specific exception applies. However, unlike the Anti-Kickback Statute, EKRA is not limited to services covered by federal or state healthcare programs but applies more broadly to services covered by “healthcare benefit programs,” including commercial insurers. EKRA potentially expands the universe of arrangements that could be subject to government enforcement under federal fraud and abuse laws. In addition, while the Anti-Kickback Statute includes certain exceptions that are widely relied upon in the healthcare industry, not all of those same exceptions apply under EKRA. We cannot assure you that our relationships with healthcare providers, sales representatives, hospitals, customers, or any other party will not be subject to scrutiny or will survive regulatory challenge under EKRA. If our operations or arrangements are found to be in violation of any of the laws described above or any other governmental regulations that apply to us, we may be subject to penalties, including civil and criminal penalties, damages, fines, exclusion from the Medicare and Medicaid programs and the curtailment or restructuring of our operations. Any penalties, damages, fines, exclusions, curtailment or restructuring of our operations could adversely affect our ability to operate our business and our financial results. The risk of us being found in violation of these laws is increased by the fact that many of these laws are broad and their provisions are open to a variety of interpretations. Any action against us for violation of these laws, even if we successfully defend against that action and the underlying alleged violations, could cause us to incur significant legal expenses and divert our management’s attention from the operation of our business. If the physicians or other providers or entities with whom we do business are found to be non-compliant with applicable laws, they may be subject to sanctions, which could also have a negative impact on our business. Moreover, achieving and sustaining compliance with applicable federal and state privacy, security and fraud laws may prove costly. The regulations that govern pricing and reimbursement for new products vary widely from country to country, and may adversely affect the pricing, coverage and reimbursement rates of our products in other countries. The regulations that govern pricing and reimbursement for new products vary widely from country to country. Some countries require approval of the sale price of a product before it can be marketed. In many countries, the pricing review period begins after marketing clearance or approval is granted. In some foreign markets, pricing remains subject to continuing governmental control even after initial approval is granted. As a result, we might obtain regulatory clearance or approval for a product in a particular country, but then be subject to price regulations that delay our commercial launch of the product and negatively impact the revenue we are able to generate from the sale of the product in that country. In addition, to obtain reimbursement or pricing approval in some countries, we may be required to conduct a clinical trial that compares the cost-effectiveness of our product to other available therapies. Adverse pricing limitations may hinder our ability to recoup our investment in the EsoGuard and EsoCheck products and any other products, tests or services we develop, even if our products obtain regulatory approval. 36 Due to billing complexities in the diagnostic and laboratory service industry, we may not be able to collect payment for the EsoGuard tests we perform. Billing for diagnostic and laboratory services is a complex process. Laboratories bill many different payors including patients, private insurance companies, Medicare, Medicaid, concierge medicine practices and employer groups, all of which have different billing requirements. We are continuing to work with third-party payors to cover and reimburse EsoGuard tests. If we are unsuccessful, we may not receive payment for EsoGuard tests we perform for patients on a timely basis, if at all, and we may not be able to provide services for patients with certain healthcare plans. We may face lawsuits by government or commercial payors if they believe they have overpaid us for our EsoGuard test services. We may face write-offs of doubtful accounts, disputes with payors and patients, and long collection cycles. We may face patient dissatisfaction, complaints or lawsuits, including to the extent EsoGuard tests are not fully covered by insurers and patients become responsible for all or part of the price of the test. As a result, patient compliance in fulfilling prescriptions for EsoGuard could be adversely affected. To the extent patients express dissatisfaction with our billing practices to their physicians, those physicians may be less likely to prescribe EsoGuard for other patients, and our business would be adversely affected. Even if payors do agree to cover EsoGuard, our billing and collections process may be complicated by the following and other factors, which may be beyond our control: ● disputes among payors as to which payor is responsible for payment; ● disparity in coverage among various payors or among various healthcare plans offered by a single payor; ● payer medical management requirements, including prior authorization requirements; ● differing information and billing requirements among payors; and ● failure by patients or physicians to provide complete and correct billing information. Furthermore, our contracts with a commercial payor may not permit us to bill patients insured by that payor for amounts beyond deductibles, co-payments and co-insurance as prescribed in the coverage agreement between the payor and the patients. Moreover, when contracted payors do not cover an EsoGuard test, for example, for failure to satisfy prior-authorization or other payor medical management requirements, we may not be permitted to collect the balance from the patient and our business may be adversely impacted. The uncertainty of receiving payment for our EsoGuard test and complex laboratory billing processes could negatively affect our business and our operating results. Healthcare reform measures, including those targeting Medicare or Medicaid, could hinder or prevent our products’ commercial success. There may well be legislative and regulatory proposals at the federal and state levels directed at containing or lowering the cost of health care, including such efforts to reduce Medicare and Medicaid spending. We cannot predict the initiatives that may be adopted in the future or their full impact. The continuing efforts of the government, insurance companies, managed care organizations and other payors of healthcare services to contain or reduce costs of health care may adversely affect: ● our ability to set a price that we believe is fair for our products; ● our ability to generate revenue and achieve or maintain profitability; and ● the availability of capital. Further, changes in regulatory requirements and guidance may occur, both in the United States and in foreign countries, and we may need to amend clinical study protocols to reflect these changes. Amendments may require us to resubmit our clinical study protocols to an IRB for reexamination, which may impact the costs, timing or successful completion of a clinical study. In light of widely publicized events concerning the safety risk of certain drug and medical device products, regulatory authorities, members of Congress, the Governmental Accounting Office, medical professionals and the general public have all raised concerns about potential safety issues. These events have resulted in the recall and withdrawal of medical device products, revisions to product labeling that further limit use of products and establishment of risk management programs that may, for instance, restrict distribution of certain products or require safety surveillance or patient education. The increased attention to safety issues may result in a more cautious approach by FDA or other regulatory authorities to clinical studies and the medical device approval process. Adverse event data from clinical studies may receive greater scrutiny with respect to product safety, which may make FDA or other regulatory authorities more likely to terminate or suspend clinical studies before completion, or require longer or additional clinical studies that may result in substantial additional expense and a delay or failure in obtaining approval or approval for a more limited indication than originally sought. 37 Given the serious public health risks of high profile adverse safety events with certain products, FDA or other regulatory authorities may require, as a condition of approval, costly risk evaluation and mitigation strategies, which may include safety surveillance, restricted distribution and use, patient education, enhanced labeling, special packaging or labeling, expedited reporting of certain adverse events, preapproval of promotional materials and restrictions on direct-to-consumer advertising. Our medical products may in the future be subject to product recalls that could harm our reputation, business, and financial results. FDA has the authority to require the recall of commercialized medical device products in the event of material deficiencies or defects in design or manufacture. In the case of FDA, the authority to require a recall must be based on an FDA finding that there is a reasonable probability that the device would cause serious injury or death. Manufacturers may, under their own initiative, recall a product if any material deficiency in a device is found. A government-mandated or voluntary recall by us or one of our distributors could occur as a result of component failures, manufacturing errors, design or labeling defects or other deficiencies and issues. Recalls of any of our products would divert managerial and financial resources and have an adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations. FDA requires that certain classifications of recalls be reported to FDA within ten working days after the recall is initiated. Companies are required to maintain certain records of recalls, even if they are not reportable to FDA. We may initiate voluntary recalls involving our products in the future that we determine do not require notification of FDA. If FDA disagrees with our determinations, they could require us to report those actions as recalls. A future recall announcement could harm our reputation with customers and negatively affect its sales. In addition, FDA could take enforcement action for failing to report the recalls when they were conducted. No recalls of EsoCheck have been reported to FDA. If our medical products cause or contribute to a death or a serious injury, or malfunction in certain ways, we will be subject to medical device reporting regulations, which can result in voluntary corrective actions or agency enforcement actions. Under FDA medical device reporting regulations, medical device manufacturers are required to report to FDA information that a device has or may have caused or contributed to a death or serious injury or has malfunctioned in a way that would likely cause or contribute to death or serious injury if the malfunction of the device or one of our similar devices were to recur. If we fail to report these events to FDA within the required timeframes, or at all, FDA could take enforcement action against us. Any such adverse event involving our products also could result in future voluntary corrective actions, such as recalls or customer notifications, or agency action, such as inspection or enforcement action. Any corrective action, whether voluntary or involuntary, as well as defending ourselves in a lawsuit, will require the dedication of our time and capital, distract management from operating our business, and may harm our reputation and financial results. Product liability lawsuits against us could cause us to incur substantial liabilities and to limit commercialization of our products. We face an inherent risk of product liability exposure related to the sale of the EsoGuard and EsoCheck products and any other products we develop. The marketing, sale and use of our products could lead to the filing of product liability claims against us if someone alleges product failures, product malfunctions, manufacturing flaws, or design defects resulted in injury to patients. We may also be subject to liability for a misunderstanding of, or inappropriate reliance upon, the information we provide. If we cannot successfully defend ourselves against claims that a product we developed caused injuries, we may incur substantial liabilities. Regardless of merit or eventual outcome, liability claims may result in: ● decreased demand for our products; ● injury to our reputation and significant negative media attention; ● withdrawal of patients from clinical studies or cancellation of studies; ● significant costs to defend the related litigation and distraction to our management team; ● substantial monetary awards to patients; ● loss of revenue; and ● the inability to commercialize any products that we may develop. In addition, insurance coverage is increasingly expensive. We may not be able to maintain insurance coverage at a reasonable cost or in an amount adequate to satisfy any liability that may arise. Compliance with the HIPAA security, privacy and breach notification regulations may increase our costs. The HIPAA privacy, security and breach notification regulations, including the expanded requirements under HITECH, establish comprehensive federal standards with respect to the uses and disclosures of protected health information, or “PHI,” by health plans, healthcare providers and healthcare clearinghouses, in addition to setting standards to protect the confidentiality, integrity and security of PHI. The regulations establish a complex regulatory framework on a variety of subjects, including: ● the circumstances under which uses and disclosures of PHI are permitted or required without a specific authorization by the patient, including but not limited to treatment purposes, activities to obtain payments for our services, and our healthcare operations activities; ● a patient’s rights to access, amend and receive an accounting of certain disclosures of PHI; 38 ● requirements to notify individuals if there is a breach of their PHI; ● the contents of notices of privacy practices for PHI; ● administrative, technical and physical safeguards required of entities that use or receive PHI; and ● the protection of computing systems maintaining electronic PHI. We have implemented practices intended to meet the requirements of the HIPAA privacy, security and breach notification regulations, as required by law. We are required to comply with federal privacy, security and breach notification regulations as well as varying state privacy, security and breach notification laws and regulations, which may be more stringent than federal HIPAA requirements. In addition, for healthcare data transfers from other countries relating to citizens of those countries, we must comply with the laws of those countries. The federal privacy regulations restrict our ability to use or disclose patient identifiable data, without patient authorization, for purposes other than payment, treatment, healthcare operations and certain other specified disclosures such as public health and governmental oversight of the healthcare industry. HIPAA provides for significant fines and other penalties for wrongful use or disclosure of PHI, including potential civil and criminal fines and penalties. Computer networks are always vulnerable to breach and unauthorized persons may in the future be able to exploit weaknesses in the security systems of our computer networks and gain access to PHI. Additionally, we share PHI with third-parties who are legally obligated to safeguard and maintain the confidentiality of PHI. Unauthorized persons may be able to gain access to PHI stored in such third-parties computer networks. Any wrongful use or disclosure of PHI by us or such third-parties, including disclosure due to data theft or unauthorized access to our or our third-parties computer networks, could subject us to fines or penalties that could adversely affect our business and results of operations. Although the HIPAA statute and regulations do not expressly provide for a private right of damages, we could also incur damages under state laws to private parties for the wrongful use or disclosure of confidential health information or other private personal information. Risks Associated with Our Intellectual Property and Technology Infrastructure We may not be able to protect or enforce the intellectual property rights for the technology used in, or expected to be used in, our products, which could impair our competitive position. Our success depends significantly on our ability to protect the patents, trademarks, trade secrets, copyrights and the other intellectual property rights for the technology used, or expected to be used, in our products. We rely primarily on patent protection and trade secrets, including the patents to the EsoGuard and EsoCheck technologies licensed by us from CWRU, as well as a combination of copyright and trademark laws and nondisclosure and confidentiality agreements to protect the technology and other intellectual property on which we rely. However, these legal means afford only limited protection and may not adequately protect our rights or permit us to gain or maintain any competitive advantage. In addition, although we have the right to direct CWRU to seek patent protection for the EsoGuard and EsoCheck technology in additional countries, we have limited control over the prosecution of any such application and have limited control over CWRU’s other intellectual property practices as they relate to the EsoGuard and EsoCheck technologies. Despite our intellectual property rights practices, it may be possible for a third party to copy or otherwise obtain and use the technology on which we rely without authorization, develop similar technology independently or design around our patents. Furthermore, protecting intellectual property rights is costly and time consuming. We are responsible for the costs of CWRU in preparing, filing and prosecuting any patents related to the EsoGuard technology (subject to a provision for cost sharing in the event CWRU grants additional licenses to the technology, none of which would be permitted to overlap with our field of use). Patents relied on by us may expire or may be challenged, invalidated, or circumvented, which could limit our ability to stop competitors from marketing related technologies. If any of the patents fails to protect the technology used by us, it would make it easier for our competitors to offer similar products. In addition, there is no assurance that competitors will not be able to design around the patents. Upon expiration of the patents, we may lose some of our rights to exclude others from making, using, selling, or importing products using the technology based on the expired patents. We cannot be assured that any pending or future patent applications for the technology on which we rely will result in the issuance of a patent to us. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, or the “PTO,” may deny or require significant narrowing of claims in the patent applications, and patents issued as a result of the patent applications, if any, may not provide us with significant commercial protection or be issued in a form that is advantageous to us. We could also incur substantial costs in proceedings before the PTO. We also rely on unpatented proprietary technology. We cannot assure you that we can meaningfully protect all our rights in our unpatented proprietary technology or that others will not independently develop substantially equivalent proprietary products or processes or otherwise gain access to our unpatented proprietary technology. We seek to protect our know-how and other unpatented proprietary technology with confidentiality agreements and/or intellectual property assignment agreements with our team members, independent distributors and consultants. However, such agreements may not be enforceable or may not provide meaningful protection for our proprietary information in the event of unauthorized use or disclosure or other breaches of the agreements or in the event that our competitors discover or independently develop similar or identical designs or other proprietary information. Our trade secrets may be vulnerable to disclosure or misappropriation by employees, contractors, and other persons. 39 We also rely on the use of registered and common law trademarks with respect to the brand names of some of our products. Common law trademarks provide less protection than registered trademarks. Furthermore, we may not be able to obtain patent protection and other intellectual property rights in all the countries in which we operate, and under the laws of such countries, patents and other intellectual property rights may be unavailable or limited in scope. Any inability on our part to adequately protect our intellectual property may have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. We may be subject to intellectual property infringement claims by third parties which could be costly to defend, divert management’s attention and resources, and may result in liability. The medical device industry is characterized by vigorous protection and pursuit of intellectual property rights. Companies in the medical device industry have used intellectual property litigation to gain a competitive advantage in the marketplace. From time to time, third parties may assert against us or CWRU their patent, copyright, trademark, and other intellectual property rights relating to technologies that are important to our business. Searches for existing intellectual property rights may not reveal important intellectual property and our competitors may also have filed for patent protection, information which is not publicly available, just as claimed trademark rights may not be revealed through our searches. We may be subject to claims that our team members or CWRU’s personnel have disclosed, or that we have used, or CWRU has used, trade secrets or other proprietary information of our team members’ or CWRU’s personnel’s former employers. Our efforts to identify and avoid infringing upon third parties’ intellectual property rights may not always be successful. Any claims that our products or processes infringe these rights, regardless of their merit or resolution, could be costly, time consuming and may divert the efforts and attention of our management and technical personnel. In addition, we may not prevail in such proceedings given the complex technical issues and inherent uncertainties in intellectual property litigation. In any infringement litigation against CWRU relating to the EsoGuard technology, we will have the right to assume the defense of such suit at our expense. Any claims of patent or other intellectual property infringement against us or CWRU, even those without merit, could: ● increase the cost of our products; ● be expensive and/or time consuming to defend; ● result in our being required to pay significant damages to third parties; ● force us to cease making or selling products that incorporate the challenged intellectual property; ● require us to redesign, reengineer or rebrand our products and technologies; ● require us to enter into royalty or licensing agreements in order to obtain the right to use a third party’s intellectual property on terms that may not be favorable or acceptable to us; ● require us to develop alternative non-infringing technology, which could require significant effort and expense; ● require us to indemnify third parties pursuant to contracts in which we have agreed to provide indemnification for intellectual property infringement claims; ● result in our customers or potential customers deferring or limiting their purchase or use of the affected products impacted by the claims until the claims are resolved; and ● otherwise have a material adverse effect on our business. Any of the foregoing could affect our ability to compete or have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations. Competitors may violate the intellectual property rights for the technology used in, or expected to be used in, our products, and we may bring litigation to protect and enforce our intellectual property rights, which may result in substantial expense and may divert our attention from implementing our business strategy. We believe that the success of our business will depend, in significant part, on obtaining patent protection for our products and technologies, defending our patents and preserving our trade secrets and other proprietary intellectual property rights. Our failure to pursue any potential claim could result in the loss of our proprietary intellectual property rights and harm our position in the marketplace. Therefore, we may be forced to pursue litigation to enforce our rights. Future litigation could result in significant costs and divert the attention of our management and key personnel from our business operations and the implementation of our business strategy. 40 Failure in our information technology systems could significantly disrupt our operations and our research and development efforts, which could adversely impact our revenues, as well as our research, development and commercialization efforts. Our ability to execute our business strategy depends, in part, on the continued and uninterrupted performance of our information technology (“IT”) systems that support our operations and our research and development efforts, and those IT systems within the control of our contract manufacturers. We are substantially dependent on those IT systems to receive and process EsoGuard test orders, securely store patient health records and deliver the results of our EsoGuard tests. IT systems are vulnerable to damage from a variety of sources, including telecommunications or network failures, malicious human acts including cyberattacks, and natural disasters. Despite the precautionary measures we have taken to prevent unanticipated problems that could affect our IT systems, and the precautionary measures taken by our contract parties, sustained or repeated system failures that interrupt our ability to generate and maintain data, and in particular to operate our clinical laboratory, could adversely affect our ability to operate our business. Any interruption in the operation of IT systems could have an adverse effect on our operations. System upgrades, enhancements and replacements, as well as new systems, are required from time to time, and require significant expenditures and allocation of valuable employee resources. Delays in integration or disruptions to our business from implementation of these new or upgraded systems could have a material adverse impact on our financial condition and operating results. There can be no assurance that our process of improving existing systems, developing new systems to support our expanding operations, integrating new systems, protecting confidential patient information, and improving service levels will not be delayed or that additional systems issues will not arise in the future. Failure to adequately protect and maintain the integrity of our information systems issues and data may result in a material adverse effect on our financial position, results of operations and cash flows. Our internal computer systems, or those used by our third-party research institution collaborators, vendors or other contractors or consultants, may suffer security breaches. In the ordinary course of our business, we and our contract manufacturers store sensitive data, including intellectual property, proprietary business information, personally identifiable information of our employees and patient health records, in our data centers and on our networks. The integrity and protection of our own data, and that of our customers and employees, is critical to our business. The regulatory environment governing information, security and privacy laws is increasingly demanding and continues to evolve. Despite the implementation of security measures by us and by our contractors, our internal computer systems and those of our contractors may be vulnerable to security breaches and damage from computer viruses, unauthorized access and ransomware attacks, including the unauthorized encryption of data stored on our computer network. Any such breach or attack could materially affect business operations and result in a loss of data, damage to our IT systems, or inappropriate disclosure of confidential or proprietary information, including protected health information, which is protected by HIPAA and other laws. Any such access, disclosure, or other loss of information could result in legal claims or proceedings, liability under laws that protect the privacy of personal information, damage to our reputation, and delays in the commercialization of our products. In addition, we could incur additional cost, expense and the diversion of time and resources to recover from such an attack, and any such attach could cause our management to conclude that our disclosure controls and procedures were not effective. Risks Associated with Our Relationship with PAVmed PAVmed holds more voting stock than any of our other shareholders and thus it (or any successor to its stake in the Company), may have significant influence over certain actions requiring a stockholder vote. PAVmed owns approximately 46% as of December 31, 2024 and 35% as of March 20, 2025 of our issued common stock (with such percentage inclusive of shares of our common stock underlying granted but unvested restricted stock awards), but excluding the voting power of any convertible securities. Presently, PAVmed controls less than 50% of the combined voting power of our common stock and our convertible securities and for as long as PAVmed is our largest shareholder, PAVmed will have significant influence in the election of all the members of our board of directors. In addition, as long as PAVmed continues to control more of our voting securities than any of our other shareholders, PAVmed will also have significant influence over any other action that requires shareholder approval. If PAVmed does not provide any requisite consent allowing us to take any such action when requested, we may not be able to engage in the related activities if we do not get the required consent from our other shareholders and, as a result, our business and our operating results may be harmed. PAVmed’s interests and objectives as a stockholder may not align with, or may even directly conflict with, your interests and objectives as a stockholder. For example, PAVmed may be more or less interested in us entering into a transaction or conducting an activity due to the impact such transaction or activity may have on PAVmed as a company, independent of us. In such instances, PAVmed may exercise its influence over us in a way that is beneficial to PAVmed, and you may not be able to affect the outcome so long as PAVmed continues to hold more shareholder votes than any other shareholder. In the event PAVmed is acquired or otherwise undergoes a change of control, any acquiror or successor will be entitled to exercise the voting control and contractual rights of PAVmed and may do so in a manner that could vary significantly from that of PAVmed. 41 As a result of the exercise by the holder of PAVmed’s convertible debt and preferred stock of its rights under the agreements governing those instruments, such holder could acquire voting control of the Company. PAVmed currently has approximately $6.6 million convertible debt outstanding, which matures in December 2025, and has from time to time been in default of the financial covenants thereunder, although PAVmed has received a waiver of those financial covenants through December 31, 2025. While the holder of such indebtedness agreed to waive any such non-compliance, there can be no assurance that it will do so in the future. If the debtholder elects to accelerate PAVmed’s indebtedness rather than waiving any such non-compliance, it is likely PAVmed will not have sufficient cash on hand to pay the amounts due on an acceleration, in which case it may be required to satisfy its obligations through the transfer of its shares of common stock of the Company to such debtholder. Under the terms of PAVmed’s convertible debt, so long as any shares of PAVmed’s Series C Preferred Stock remain outstanding, the holder of such debt will be entitled to exchange all, or any portion, of the remaining debt (including any interest that would accrue thereon through the maturity date thereof) into shares of our common stock, at an exchange price per share of our common stock equal to $0.85 per share, subject to certain beneficial ownership limitations. Neither we nor PAVmed have any control over if or when the holder will exercise this right. In addition, under the terms of PAVmed’s Series C Preferred Stock, the holder may elect to convert such shares of preferred stock into common stock of PAVmed at a fixed conversion price $1.068 per share of PAVmed common stock (or, under certain circumstance, at a lower conversion price). If the holder of the Series C Preferred Stock converted such equity interest in full into shares of PAVmed common stock at the fixed conversion price, such holder would likely acquire control of PAVmed (and accordingly, its interest in us). In any such event, the applicable holder in turn would be entitled to exercise the voting control with respect to any shares of our common stock that it acquires from, or controls through, PAVmed and may do so in a manner that could vary significantly from that of PAVmed. Certain conflicts of interest may arise between us and our affiliated companies, including PAVmed, and in some cases we have waived certain rights with respect thereto. Our certificate of incorporation includes a provision stating that we renounce any interest or expectancy in, or being offered an opportunity to participate in, any business opportunities, that are presented to our officers, directors, employees or stockholders, or affiliates thereof, who are also officers, directors, employees or stockholders of PAVmed or affiliates thereof, each a “PAVmed Party,” and in which a PAVmed Party may have an interest or expectancy, a “PAVmed Opportunity,” except as may be prescribed by any written agreement between us and PAVmed approved by our Board of Directors. In addition, no PAVmed Party will have any duty to communicate or present such business opportunities to us, and no PAVmed Party will be liable to our company or our stockholders for breach of any fiduciary duty, including by reason of a PAVmed Party pursuing or acquiring any PAVmed Opportunity. Pursuant to the management services agreement, no PAVmed Party will pursue any opportunity related to commercializing the EsoGuard diagnostic test and the EsoCheck cell collection device or developing and commercializing other products that use or enhance the same underlying technology. As a result of the foregoing, a potential business opportunity may be presented by certain members of our management team to another entity prior to its presentation to us and we may not be afforded the opportunity to engage in such a transaction. In addition, if any PAVmed Party becomes aware of a potential business opportunity that is a PAVmed Opportunity (other than those specified in the management services agreement), including any such opportunity relating to any other diagnostic test or medical device, he or she will be entitled to present those opportunities to another PAVmed Party prior to presenting them to us. Accordingly, any conflicts of interest among us and our officers, directors, stockholders or their affiliates, including PAVmed and certain of our officers and directors, relating to business opportunities may not be resolved in our favor, and in cases where the business opportunity is a PAVmed Opportunity and it is presented to another PAVmed Party, we have waived our right to monetary damages in the event of any such conflict. Our ability to operate our business effectively may suffer if the MSA with PAVmed is insufficient to meet our needs or if, upon the termination of the MSA, we do not cost-effectively establish our own fully functional financial, administrative, operational and other support systems in order to operate as a stand-alone company. We will continue to use PAVmed’s services under the MSA until such time as our Board of Directors determines it would be in our best interest to engage a dedicated management team. Upon termination or amendment of the MSA, we may need to create our own financial, administrative, operational and other support systems or contract with third parties to replace PAVmed’s systems. As such systems will be new, it may take additional time to fully implement and stabilize these systems. In order to successfully implement our own systems and operate as a stand-alone business, we must be able to attract and retain a number of highly skilled employees. The services provided under the MSA may not be sufficient to meet our needs and, after we terminate the MSA, we may not be able to replace these services or facilities at favorable costs and on favorable terms, if at all. Any gap in the services provided by PAVmed, or failure or significant downtime in our own financial or administrative systems once established, could result in unexpected costs, impact our results and/or prevent us from paying our suppliers and employees and performing other administrative services on a timely basis and could materially harm our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows. We cannot assure you that such services are not available at lower cost from third parties. Any payments made to PAVmed will reduce our cash flow and profits. Currently, under our MSA, the annual fees payable to PAVmed are $12.6 million. 42 Any disputes that arise between us and PAVmed with respect to our past and ongoing relationships could harm our business operations. Disputes may arise between PAVmed and us in a number of areas relating to our past and ongoing relationships, including: ● employee allocation, retention and recruiting; ● the nature, quality, and pricing of the services PAVmed has agreed to provide us; and ● business opportunities that may be attractive to both PAVmed and us. We may not be able to resolve any potential conflicts, and even if we do, the resolution may be less favorable than if we were dealing with an unaffiliated party. Risks Associated with Ownership of Our Common Stock If securities or industry analysts do not publish research, or publish inaccurate or unfavorable research, about our business, our stock price and trading volume could decline. The trading market for our common stock will depend, in part, on the research and reports that securities or industry analysts publish about us or our business. Securities and industry analysts currently publish research on our company, but there is no assurance that they will continue to do so. If no securities or industry analysts cover our company, the trading price for our common stock would likely be negatively impacted. If one or more of the analysts who cover us downgrade our stock or publish inaccurate or unfavorable research about our business, our stock price would likely decline. In addition, if our operating results fail to meet the forecast of analysts, our stock price would likely decline. If one or more of these analysts cease coverage of our company or fail to publish reports on us regularly, demand for our common stock could decrease, which might cause our stock price and trading volume to decline. Nasdaq may in the future delist our common stock, which could limit investors’ ability to make transactions in our securities and subject us to additional trading restrictions. Our common stock is listed on the Nasdaq Capital Market. We are required to meet certain financial and liquidity criteria to maintain the listing of our common stock on Nasdaq (and we while we are currently in compliance with such requirements, from time to time we have failed ot comply with the Nasdaq’s minimum bid price requirement). If we violate the Nasdaq continued listing requirements or fail to meet any of Nasdaq’s continued listing standards, our common stock may be delisted. In addition, while we have no present intention to do so, our Board of Directors may determine that the cost of maintaining our listing on a national securities exchange outweighs the benefits of such listing. If Nasdaq delists our common stock from trading on its exchange, or we voluntarily remove our common stock from listing, we could face significant material adverse consequences, including: ● a limited availability of market quotations for our common stock; ● reduced liquidity with respect to our common stock; ● a determination that our shares of common stock are “penny stock” which will require brokers trading in our shares of common stock to adhere to more stringent rules, possibly resulting in a reduced level of trading activity in the secondary trading market for our shares of common stock; ● a limited amount of news and analyst coverage for our company; and ● a decreased ability to issue additional securities or obtain additional financing in the future. Our stock price may be volatile, and holders of our common stock could incur substantial losses. Our stock price is likely to be volatile. The stock market in general, and the market for life science companies, and medical device companies in particular, have experienced extreme volatility that has often been unrelated to the operating performance of particular companies. As a result of this volatility, investors may experience losses on their investment in our common stock. For example, on March 20, 2025, the last reported sale price of our common stock was $1.57. In the last six months, between September 23, 2024 and March 20, 2025, the intra-day sale price of our common stock fluctuated between a reported low sale price of $0.73 and a reported high sale price of $1.63. We may incur rapid and substantial increases or decreases in our stock price in the foreseeable future that may or may not coincide in timing with the disclosure of news or developments by us. The market price for our common stock may be influenced by many broad market and industry factors. These broad market and industry factors may seriously harm the market price of our common stock, regardless of our operating performance. In addition, the market price for our common stock may be subject to price movements that may not comport with macro, industry or company-specific fundamentals, including, without limitation, the sentiment of retail investors (including as may be expressed on financial trading and other social media sites and online forums), the direct access by retail investors to broadly available trading platforms, the amount and status of short interest in our securities, access to margin debt, trading in options and other derivatives on our common stock and any related hedging and other trading factors. In the past, following periods of volatility in the market, securities class-action litigation has often been instituted against companies. Such litigation, if instituted against us, could result in substantial costs and diversion of management’s attention and resources, which could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations and growth prospects. 43 We do not intend to pay any dividends on our common stock at this time. We have not paid any cash dividends on our shares of common stock to date. The payment of cash dividends on our common stock in the future will be dependent upon our revenues and earnings, if any, capital requirements and general financial condition and will be within the discretion of our Board of Directors. It is the present intention of our Board of Directors to retain all earnings, if any, for use in our business operations and, accordingly, our Board of Directors does not anticipate declaring any dividends on our common stock in the foreseeable future. As a result, any gain you will realize on our common stock will result solely from the appreciation of such shares. We are obligated to pay dividends in shares of our common stock to the holders of shares of our Series B Preferred Stock and Series B-1 Preferred Stock, which stock dividends will dilute our existing shareholders. Each holder of our Series B Preferred Stock and Series B-1 Preferred Stock is entitled to receive, on the one-year and two-year anniversaries of the issuance thereof, a dividend payable in shares of our common stock equal to 20% of the number of shares of common stock issuable upon conversion of the shares of preferred stock it then holds. Such stock dividends would be accelerated upon a mandatory conversion of our preferred stock in connection with certain change of control transactions. Such dividends will dilute the holdings of our existing stockholders. We incur significant costs as a result of operating as a public company, and our management will be required to devote substantial time to compliance initiatives. As a public company, we will incur significant legal, accounting and other expenses that we would not incur as a private company. We will be subject to the reporting requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, the other rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission, or “SEC,” and the rules and regulations of Nasdaq. The expenses that will be required in order to adequately prepare for being a public company will be material, and compliance with the various reporting and other requirements applicable to public companies will require considerable time and attention of management. For example, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and the rules of the SEC and national securities exchanges have imposed various requirements on public companies, including requiring establishment and maintenance of effective disclosure and financial controls. Our management and other personnel will need to devote a substantial amount of time to these compliance initiatives. These rules and regulations will continue to increase our legal and financial compliance costs and will make some activities more time-consuming and costly, and could also make it more difficult for us to attract and retain qualified personnel to serve on our Board of Directors, our board committees, or as executive officers. If we fail to establish and maintain proper and effective internal control over financial reporting, investors may lose confidence in the accuracy and completeness of our financial reports and the market price of our common stock could decline significantly. Ensuring that we have adequate internal financial and accounting controls and procedures in place so that we can produce accurate financial statements on a timely basis is a costly and time-consuming effort that needs to be re-evaluated frequently. As a public company, we will be required to maintain internal controls over financial reporting and to report any material weaknesses in such internal controls. Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act requires annual management assessment of the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting. However, our auditors will not be required to formally attest to the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting while we are an emerging growth company or a smaller reporting company as defined under rules promulgated by the SEC. Implementing any appropriate changes to our internal controls may distract our officers and employees, entail substantial costs to modify our existing processes and take significant time to complete. These changes may not, however, be effective in maintaining the adequacy of our internal controls, and any failure to maintain that adequacy, or consequent inability to produce accurate financial statements on a timely basis, could increase our operating costs and harm our business. In addition, investors’ perceptions that our internal controls are inadequate or that we are unable to produce accurate financial statements on a timely basis could cause investors to lose confidence in the accuracy and completeness of our financial reports and could cause the market price of our common stock to decline significantly. We are subject to evolving corporate governance and public disclosure expectations and regulations that impact compliance costs and risks of noncompliance. We are subject to changing rules and regulations promulgated by a number of governmental and self-regulatory organizations, including the SEC and Nasdaq, as well as evolving investor expectations around corporate governance and environmental and social practices and disclosures. These rules and regulations continue to evolve in scope and complexity, and many new requirements have been created in response to laws enacted by the U.S. and foreign governments, making compliance more difficult and uncertain. The increase in costs to comply with such evolving expectations, rules and regulations, as well as any risk of noncompliance, could adversely impact us. 44 We are an “emerging growth company,” and we cannot be certain if the reduced reporting requirements applicable to emerging growth companies will make our common stock less attractive to investors. We are an “emerging growth company,” as defined in the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act, or the JOBS Act, which was enacted in April 2012. For as long as we continue to be an emerging growth company, we may take advantage of exemptions from various reporting requirements that are applicable to other public companies that are not emerging growth companies, including not being required to comply with the auditor attestation requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, or the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, reduced disclosure obligations regarding executive compensation in our periodic reports and proxy statements and exemptions from the requirements of holding a nonbinding advisory vote on executive compensation and stockholder approval of any golden parachute payments not previously approved. We could be an emerging growth company for up to five years, although circumstances could cause us to lose that status earlier. We will remain an emerging growth company until the earlier of (1) the last day of the fiscal year following the fifth anniversary of the completion of our initial public offering, (2) the last day of the fiscal year in which we have total annual gross revenue of at least $1.07 billion, (3) the date on which we are deemed to be a large accelerated filer, which means the market value of our common stock that is held by non-affiliates exceeds $700.0 million as of the prior June 30th, and (4) the date on which we have issued more than $1.0 billion in non-convertible debt securities during the prior three-year period. We cannot predict if investors will find our common stock less attractive because we may rely on these exemptions. If some investors find our common stock less attractive as a result, there may be a less active trading market for our common stock and our stock price may suffer or be more volatile. Under the JOBS Act, emerging growth companies can delay adopting new or revised accounting standards issued subsequent to the enactment of the JOBS Act until such time as those standards apply to private companies. We have elected to use the extended transition period for complying with new or revised accounting standards that have different effective dates for public and private companies until the earlier of the date we (i) are no longer an emerging growth company or (ii) affirmatively and irrevocably opt out of the extended transition period under the JOBS Act. Provisions in our corporate charter documents and under Delaware law could make an acquisition of us more difficult and may prevent attempts by our stockholders to replace or remove our current management. Provisions in our corporate charter and our bylaws may discourage, delay or prevent a merger, acquisition or other change in control of us that stockholders may consider favorable, including transactions in which stockholders might otherwise receive a premium for their shares. These provisions could also limit the price that investors might be willing to pay in the future for shares of our common stock, thereby depressing the market price of our common stock. In addition, these provisions may frustrate or prevent any attempts by our stockholders to replace or remove our current management by making it more difficult for stockholders to replace members of our Board of Directors. Because our Board of Directors is responsible for appointing the members of our management team, these provisions could in turn affect any attempt by our stockholders to replace current members of our management team. Among others, these provisions include the following. ● our Board of Directors will be divided into three classes with staggered three-year terms which may delay or prevent a change of our management or a change in control; ● our Board of Directors will have the right to elect directors to fill a vacancy created by the expansion of our Board of Directors or the resignation, death or removal of a director, which will prevent stockholders from being able to fill vacancies on our Board of Directors; ● our certificate of incorporation will not permit cumulative voting in the election of directors, which limits the ability of minority stockholders to elect director candidates; and ● our stockholders will be required to provide advance notice and additional disclosures in order to nominate individuals for election to our Board of Directors or to propose matters that can be acted upon at a stockholders’ meeting, which may discourage or deter a potential acquirer from conducting a solicitation of proxies to elect the acquirer’s own slate of directors or otherwise attempting to obtain control of our company. Moreover, because we are incorporated in Delaware, we are governed by the provisions of Section 203 of the Delaware General Corporation Law, which prohibits a person who owns in excess of 15% of our outstanding voting stock from merging or combining with us for a period of three years after the date of the transaction in which the person acquired in excess of 15% of our outstanding voting stock, unless the merger or combination is approved in a prescribed manner. 45 Our charter provides, subject to limited exceptions, that the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware will be the sole and exclusive forum for certain stockholder litigation matters, which could limit our stockholders’ ability to obtain a favorable judicial forum for disputes with us or our directors, officers, employees or stockholders. Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will require, to the fullest extent permitted by law, subject to limited exceptions, that derivative actions brought in our name, actions against directors, officers and employees for breach of fiduciary duty and other similar actions may be brought only in the Court of Chancery in the State of Delaware and, if brought outside of Delaware, the stockholder bringing the suit will be deemed to have consented to service of process on such stockholder’s counsel in any action brought to enforce the exclusive forum provision. Any person or entity purchasing or otherwise acquiring any interest in shares of our capital stock shall be deemed to have notice of and consented to the forum provisions in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation. Notwithstanding the foregoing, Section 27 of the Exchange Act creates exclusive federal jurisdiction over all suits brought to enforce any duty or liability created by the Exchange Act or the rules and regulations thereunder. In addition, Section 22 of the Securities Act creates concurrent jurisdiction for federal and state courts over all suits brought to enforce any duty or liability created by the Securities Act or the rules and regulations thereunder. As a result, the exclusive forum provision will provide that the Court of Chancery and the federal district court for the District of Delaware will have concurrent jurisdiction over any action arising under the Securities Act or the rules and regulations thereunder, and the exclusive forum provision will not apply to suits brought to enforce any duty or liability created by the Exchange Act or the rules and regulations thereunder or any other claim for which the federal courts have exclusive jurisdiction. To the extent the exclusive forum provision restricts the courts in which our stockholders may bring claims arising under the Securities Act and the rules and regulations thereunder, there is uncertainty as to whether a court would enforce such provision. Investors cannot waive compliance with the federal securities laws and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder. This exclusive forum provision may limit a stockholder’s ability to bring a claim in a judicial forum that it finds favorable for disputes with us or any of our directors, officers, other employees or stockholders, which may discourage lawsuits with respect to such claims. By requiring a stockholder to bring such a claim in the Court of Chancery (or the federal district court for the District of Delaware, in the case of an action under the Securities Act or the rules and regulations thereunder), the exclusive forum provision also may increase the costs to a stockholder of bringing such a claim. Alternatively, if a court were to find the exclusive forum provision contained in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation to be inapplicable or unenforceable in an action, we may incur additional costs associated with resolving such action in other jurisdictions, which could harm our business, operating results and financial condition. 46