Scantek Medical Inc, the US medical device manufacturer, has granted a $350,000 (€530,303) licence to Dublin-based company Nugard Healthcare, to market a minimum 60,000 of its BreastCare Differential Temperature Sensor in the Republic and Britain annually.

The product can assess breast cancer risks by measuring the differential temperatures between corresponding areas of a woman's breasts. "Not only does this agreement provide access to two important markets, but it also represents our initial presence in Europe. We hope to bolster this presence with additional distribution agreements that are presently being negotiated," said Mr Zsigmond Sagi, Scantek's president.

Scantek has received shares equivalent to 15 per cent of Nugard's total outstanding ordinary shares. The agreement requires minimum purchases of 5,000 units of the product from Scantex per month at $10 to $15 a unit. According to World Health Organisation data from 1996, the State ranked first out of 46 countries for breast cancer mortality rates, at 27.4 per 100,000.