[Shin Min-jun, Edaily reporter] “In the second half of this year, we plan to expand overseas business (exports) to places such as Uzbekistan and expand domestic product sales. This year will be the first year of a quantum jump in performance.”
Kim Yoo Soon(picture), president of YESONG Co., Ltd.
Equipped with a full lineup of Liquid based cytology including Processor·Autostainer
Kim Yoo Soon(picture), president of YESONG Co., Ltd, revealed these aspirations in a recent interview with Edaily. YESONG is a company specializing in Liquid Based Cytology, founded in 2014. Cervical cancer is the main target for testing, and the scope of testing is being expanded to include prostate cancer and thyroid cancer. Liquid based cytology refers to identifying and tracking the progression of diseases such as cancer by analyzing the nucleus of cells. Liquid based cytology is a technology that can quickly and in detail identify cancer occurrence and metastasis by relatively simply collecting cells from patients.
President Kim Yoo Soon leads YESONG together with president Ye Chen Su, the founder. president Kim is in charge of general product production, management, and R&D, and president Ye is in charge of general marketing. president Kim graduated from the College of Engineering at Chosun Univ. and worked at Hyundai Motor, JINWOO Kiyeon, Cell&Tech Bio, INCELL BIO, etc. President Kim has been responsible for medical device research and development for approximately 15 years. President Kim took office as YESONG’s president and director of the R&D center this year.
Since its establishment, YESONG has conducted medical device trade and distribution business targeting Central Asia, including Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and Azerbaijan. Afterwards, YESONG began producing its own products in earnest in 2019, including the YES PATH-Cell Processor, a smear equipment for liquid based cytology.
According to president Kim, “YESONG was founded after president Ye, a dentist and founder, volunteered medical services in Kazakhstan.” He added, “After establishing YESONG, we distributed medical device products from other companies, but felt the need for our own products, so we developed and launched our own products,”
YESONG’s product lineup is as follows: △ANYPREP Processor, the semi-automatic processor △YES PATH-Cell Processor, the semi-automatic processor △YES PATH FULL Auto Cell Processor, the full-automatic processor △YES PATH Auto Stainer
YESONG’s flagship product, the YES PATH Cell Processor, is a liquid based cytology slide preparation system: cells collected from the human body are placed in a preservative solution through a sample vial (kit), then smeared on a slide, and all cancers and their precursors in the human body are examined based on the shape of the cells. YES PATH Cell Processor can insert two samples simultaneously and is composed of a triple filter method. YES PATH Cell Processor can process 200 tests per hour with upgraded systems such as dispersion pumping system and automatic filter discharge system.
YES PATH FULL Auto Cell Processor is a fully automatic robot system that processes 120 tests per hour. YES PATH FULL Auto Cell Processor is a fully automatic operation system that can handle 30 samples per tray, and its advantage is that it can perform other tasks simultaneously.
The YES PATH Auto Stainer is an automatic staining device that stains surgical tissue, pathology, cytology, and hematology samples on slides in histological and anatomical pathology laboratories. YES PATH Auto Stainer mounts slides with cells on a dedicated rack and automatically transfers them to standard reagents according to a designated sequence to stain the nuclei and cytoplasm of tissues and cells with specific colors.
President Kim said, “”YESONG’s Processor is a dispersion pumping system-type equipment using a filter vial for liquid based cytology.” and added, “Compared to other equipment, the processor can obtain accurate test results with clean cells and minimal dropout cells.”
Then he said “Existing cell testing (conventional) methods achieve cell reproducibility at about 20%, but using the YES PATH Cell Processor, cell reproducibility can be achieved at 85-95%.” and “Conventional methods have the inconvenience of having to collect cells again if retesting is necessary. However, using the YES PATH Preservative Solution, cells can be preserved for up to 3 months without deformation, allowing re-examination without additional cell collection.”
He continued, “Among domestic liquid-based cytology testing companies, YESONG is the only company that has both a processor and stainer lineup.”, and added “YESONG’s kits and equipment are relatively cheaper compared to global companies such as Hologic and Becton Dickinson in the United States. Besides, it is convenient to work with and is equipped with compact equipment, which is a great advantage for use at the inspection site.”
Specimen vial (kit) and cell attachment process (above), small processor YES PATH Cell Processor △semi-automatic processor YES PATH Cell Processor △full automatic processor YES PATH FULL Auto Cell Processor △autostainer YES PATH Auto Stainer(In order from bottom left). (Source=YESONG)
Expanding overseas business, including in Central Asia…Domestic business also started
YESONG plans to improve its performance in earnest by expanding its overseas business this year. This year YESONG plans to export 2 million test kits to Central Asia, including Uzbekistan. Last year, YESONG exported 30 processors and 20 auto stainers, including 400,000 test kits, to Kazakhstan and other countries. YESONG is in the process of registering products in those countries in order to target Southeast Asian markets, such as the Philippines, and Central and South American markets, such as Mexico. YESONG is also pursuing the establishment of a local corporation with local partners. YESONG is also planning to participate in the Vietnam Medical Device Exhibition to be held starting on the 11th.
He said “Currently, 100% of YESONG’s performance is generated from overseas business.” and “YESONG is conducting marketing in 17 countries excluding Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan to improve performance. The main target is developing countries where it is difficult to introduce expensive equipment from global companies.”
He also said “In the case of Central Asia, president Ye is utilizing the network and experience he has accumulated while staying in Kazakhstan.” and “In the case of the remaining developing countries, since they do not have both processors and stainers, YESONG, which has price competitiveness and excellent equipment quality, is believed to have a good chance of winning.”
YESONG has also begun targeting the domestic market. YESONG supplies YES PATH Cell Processor to GC Labs. YESONG is also promoting the supply of YES PATH Cell Processor and YES PATH FULL Auto Cell Processor to domestic testing centers and medical institutions, including Samkwang Medical Lab. Based on this, YESONG is expected to see significant performance improvement this year.
According to the medical device industry, YESONG’s sales last year are estimated at 2.5 billion won. The medical device industry expects YESONG’s sales to exceed 5 billion won this year.
President Kim said, “We will produce high-quality test results not only overseas but also domestically through products with excellent technology and quality,” and added “Ultimately, we will grow into a good company that contributes to protecting the lives and health of patients.”
source: https://pharm.edaily.co.kr/news/read?newsId=01587526638919424&mediaCodeNo=257