Lucid Diagnostics, a subsidiary of PAVmed, has launched the EsoGuard Esophageal DNA Test as a laboratory developed test (LDT), after completing CLIA/CAP certification of the test at Lucid’s commercial diagnostic laboratory partner ResearchDx. EsoGuard is designed to facilitate the diagnosis of Barrett’s Esophagus (BE) and related precursors to highly lethal esophageal adenocarcinoma (EAC). EsoGuard LDT is performed on cells which are noninvasively sampled from the distal esophageal lining and shipped to ResearchDx. The lab extracts the DNA, which is then subjected to bisulfite conversion, PCR amplification and next-generation sequencing to determine the methylation status of 31 sites on the Vimentin (VIM) and CyclinA1 (CCNA) genes. An algorithm calculates the percentage of DNA molecules in which a proportion of methylated sites on either gene exceeds a certain threshold, delivering a positive or negative result.