BT BeaMedical Technologies a private company developing a next-generation laser-based platform for epilepsy and cancer surgery, has notified Innovation Pharmaceuticals that it has received U.S. Food and Drug Administration clearance for its MANTA surgical laser family. The clearance is an important milestone for BeaMed in its development of an advanced laser technology with respect to shaping energy and matching it to patient specific anatomy, a novel concept that BeaMed is proving a reality. Innovation Pharmaceuticals made a strategic investment to acquire a minority stake in BeaMed in June 2022.
BeaMed is the inventor and developer of the StingRay Laser System a novel laser-based thermal ablation technology designed for treatment of previously inoperable cases of epilepsy and for improvement of outcomes and enablement of new treatment options for oncology procedures, including those treating brain, prostate, liver, breast, and lung cancers. The StingRay Laser System will utilize the MANTA laser family as its core energy generation devices coupled to new fiber optic technology, allowing a perfect match between the exact structure of tumors and epileptic focal points and the energy delivery, while protecting vital functional areas against thermal damage.
The MANTA surgical laser family was cleared by the FDA including five different wavelengths and soft tissue use in a very wide set of clinical specialties, including Neurosurgery, Spinal Surgery, Urology, Thoracic Surgery, Pulmonary Surgery, Gynecology, General Surgery, ENT/Head and Neck, Plastic Surgery, Orthopedics, Arthroscopy, Ophthalmology, Radiology, and Oral Surgery.
BeaMed expects to soon make requisite submissions to the FDA for clearance of its fiber optics for use in multiple medical indications.
“We are excited with the speed of progress BeaMed is making towards introduction of its new platform product with the potential to help millions of patients globally suffering from epilepsy and cancer in multiple specialties. The execution of this submission and the speed of clearance speaks volumes to the commercialization strategy and the exceptional capabilities of the regulatory team at BeaMed,”
Leo Ehrlich, Chief Executive Officer at Innovation Pharmaceuticals
“This is an exciting and important milestone for our company. This clearance gives us two key achievements. First, U.S. market access to a wide range of potential laser energy sources, each allowing us different and unique tissue interaction, an achievement which will have wide clinical implications. The second is a very wide set of intended uses covering many key potential markets for our technology. This underscores the clear regulatory strategy of BeaMed, which goes hand in hand with our broad impact business vision of revolutionizing key treatments, including brain tumors, epilepsy, lung cancer, prostate cancer, breast cancer and more,” said Gil Shapira, co-founder of BeaMed.
BeaMed was founded by Moshe Eshkol and Gil Shapira, both highly experienced specialists in surgical lasers and medical devices. BeaMed and the development of the StingRay system are also supported by a special prestigious grant from the BIRD Foundation a bi-national organization supporting Israel-US collaboration. Gil Shapira brings forward 26+ years of engineering and product development and management experience, with over 17 years in the surgical laser industry. Gil owns and manages neoLaser, a company he founded in 2012, and led to revenue growth and profitability, with a 43% CAGR on its way to more than 1200 global installations and performing 50,000+ surgeries annually in over 30 countries. Previously, Gil led product development and marketing at OmniGuide, a successful high-growth laser-based medical device spin-off out of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
About Innovation Pharmaceuticals
Innovation Pharmaceuticals Inc. is a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company developing a portfolio of innovative therapies addressing multiple areas of unmet medical need, including inflammatory diseases, cancer, and infectious diseases. The Company is also active in evaluating other potential investment opportunities that can add value and diversify its portfolio.