Here's What We're Focusing On With Delcath Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:DCTH)

Delcath Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:DCTH) is having a bit of a tough time at the moment. The company is pushing for a reverse split that management deems necessary (and rightly so) to remedy a bunch of finance and capital structure issues and this potential for a split is weighing heavily on share price. To make things worse, a Seeking Alpha piece (available here) is compounding the risk off sentiment tied to the stock with its claim that massive dilution is on the cards very near term.Regular readers will know that this is one we've come back to on a few occasions over the last twelve months and, across this period, we've maintained a pretty consistent opinion on the company: that the science has some real potential and if management can get its act together then there's plenty of room for upside revaluation on its current capitalization.So where do things stand now?Well, this letter to shareholders just got filed with the SEC and it essentially outlines a plant to get this back on track with NASDAQ. The plan involves carrying out the above noted reverse split to enable some sort of issue and to give the company access to some convertible note rooted capital ($11.8 million in restricted cash). This is the company that ran up just last month on the news that shareholders had voted against a split, but that management is trying again isn’t really a surprise. Bottom line is that it's necessary and however shareholders feel about the dilution that is almost certain to hit their holdings subsequent to the split (and we understand they don't feel great about it, don't get us wrong, it's a sort of do-or-die situation for Delcath in its current format.The company needs to reduce its share count, pick up a 180-day listing related extension and get some capital on the books to fund it through to a trial related catalyst. It doesn’t make for reading, but that's just how it is right now. If the split is approved (and there's a substantial institutional base in place now that wasn’t there last month when shareholders outvoted the insiders, so approval is pretty much a certainty) then the company will take a hit but can finally start getting things moving from a pipeline perspective and – in doing so – put all these concerns in the rearview.Against a backdrop of all this doom and gloom, here's something that might give shareholders something to smile about.Take a look at this link.It's a page from UPMC Hillman in Pittsburgh and it details a treatment called Percutaneous Hepatic Perfusion Treatment. It involves tying off the main arteries that go to and from the liver and then infusing the blood that's in the liver with high concentrations of chemotherapy – concentrations that would normally be toxic (if delivered through standard IV administration methods).This is the treatment that Delcath is trying to get to market and it's the indication against which the company is trialing the drug in an ongoing pivotal, available here.Exactly what it means, we're not sure. UPMC might be a trial site (there's no official list available yet) or the company may be offering the treatment through some sort of yet to be announced fast track/compassionate use program.The trial isn’t due to kick off until December and it won't finish up until 2023, but that UPMC is promoting the treatment on its website already means things are obviously moving pretty fast behind the scenes and that the facility is confident in its backing of this type of therapy.In other words, we don't know why it's there but we do know that it can only be a good thing that it is and this is a company (and a base of shareholders) that really needs some good news right now.Check out our previous coverage of this one here. We will be updating our subscribers as soon as we know more. For the latest updates on DCTH, sign up below!Image courtesy of kiril pipo via FlickrDisclosure: We have no position in DCTH and have not been compensated for this article.