Dexcom announces G6 set for late-2018 launch

Dexcom is targeting a 2018 launch for its new continuous glucose monitor (CGM), the G6.
The G6 will be one of the first products to emerge from Dexcom’s partnership with tech giant Verily (formerly Google Life Sciences).
The device will feature 10-day wear with just one fingerstick calibration per day – the Dexcom G4 and G5 both require twice-daily calibration.
Early data from the G6 has been very impressive. In one study, a 49-person trial testing the G6 sensor over 10 days of wear, 96 per cent of blood glucose readings were within 20 mg/dl (1.1 mmol/l) of the true glucose value, making it the most accurate device Dexcom has released.
Dexcom CEO Kevin Sayer, who was speaking at the company’s Q4 earnings call earlier this week, said: “Assuming this performance is replicated in the pivotal trial, we believe G6 will represent the next major paradigm shift in continuous glucose monitoring performance standards. G6 will allow us to reduce calibrations initially and provide the foundation for our no-calibration technology.”
The first generation G6 is scheduled to be submitted for US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval later this year. Commercialisation is then planned for the end of 2018, with a second generation due out in 2020.
“We continue to conduct human pilot studies with first-generation device and we have completed our initial feasibility studies for the secondarily Verily product,” added Sayer.
Dexcom also plans to release an updated version of the G5 transmitter later this year, which will include an improved touchscreen receiver, an Android platform, and extra app features such as integration of insulin data.
Through their partnership with Verily, Dexcom is aiming to produce a miniature CGM that will help people with type 1 diabetes and type 2 diabetes.
This tiny dime-sized CGM would not need any calibratio, but because the platform is based on G6 sensor technology, it will not be launched until after the G6.