Heart valve specialists raise $20M
Foldax, a Salt Lake City-based healthcare company focused on heart valve technology, has closed a $20 million Series D round of financing.
The funds are expected to go toward enrolling patients in a series of clinical trials and developing a new transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) solution. One trial is for the company’s surgical aortic Tria biopolymer heart valve, which Foldax says is the world’s first robotically manufactured heart valve.
“Calcification is a root cause of heart valve failure, in both human and artificial tissue valves,” Foldax CEO Frank Maguire said in a statement. “We asked ourselves, if we could start from scratch, what would we do differently to solve this and other persistent heart valve problems? The result was the invention of a new biopolymer, a purpose-built valve design and the first use of robotic manufacturing in heart valves, which are brought together in the Tria valve.”
MemorialCare Innovation Fund (MCIF) led the funding round, with additional contributions coming from the Angel Physicians Fund, Sayan Bioventures, BioStar Capital, Kairos Ventures and Caltech.
“We are enthusiastic about the potential for Foldax’s technology to positively impact healthcare systems in our drive to enhance both clinical outcomes and quality of life for patients suffering from cardiovascular disease,” said Brant Heise, managing director of MCIF. “The creativity demonstrated by the company in overcoming traditional obstacles has been striking, and we look forward to being part of its continuing innovation of the heart valve space.”
Michael has more than 18 years of experience as a professional writer and editor. He has written at length about cardiology, radiology, artificial intelligence and other key healthcare topics.