Hepion Pharmaceuticals, Inc. entered into an intellectual property license agreement with Cirna Diagnostics, LLC on February 25, 2026. The agreement grants Hepion rights to a novel biomarker assay that detects mutant circulating tumor RNA (ctRNA) for early diagnosis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in high-risk patients. Hepion will pay an upfront fee of $50,000, certain patent expenses, up to $2,350,000 in milestone payments, up to $4,500,000 in sales milestone payments, and a low single-digit royalty on net sales. This in-licensing deal reflects Hepion's strategic shift, under CEO Kaouthar Lbiati, to advance clinically proven liquid biopsy tests, complementing its existing mSEPT9 PCR-based assay. The ctRNA platform is a blood-based test designed for earlier detection and improved specificity compared to DNA-based approaches, with potential applications beyond liver cancer in other solid tumor types.