CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--NinePoint Medical, Inc., an emerging leader in the development of medical devices for advanced optical imaging, today announced it has completed a $34 million Series B financing led by Corning Incorporated (NYSE: GLW), along with founding investors Third Rock Ventures and Prospect Venture Partners. The company also announced the addition of three new members to its board of directors: Curt Weinstein from Corning, and independent directors Tom Miller and Mark Stautberg.
Proceeds from the financing will support the ongoing commercial launch of the NvisionVLE Imaging System in the U.S., as well as development of the company’s expanded product offering.
“The NvisionVLE Imaging System is an exciting new imaging technology that is enabling physicians to visualize esophageal abnormalities at and below the mucosal surface, helping inform clinical decision-making,” said Charles S. Carignan, M.D., president and CEO of NinePoint Medical. “With new hospitals adopting the technology every month, and with the support of our investors and strategic guidance of our board, we can continue to expand our sales force to facilitate the adoption of NvisionVLE at more centers. Hospitals from New England, to Florida, to California are already offering this advanced imaging technology. We will continue to build out our operational capacity to meet the increasing demand for our products, while also working on new features and product offerings for the future.”
Originally developed at the Wellman Center for Photomedicine at The Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), NinePoint licensed the imaging technology from MGH in 2010 as part of the largest intellectual property agreement for medical device technology in the hospital’s history. The NvisionVLE Imaging System enables physicians and pathologists to endoscopically view, for the first time, real-time, high-resolution, cross sectional images of organs and tissues up to 3mm deep at better than 10 micron resolution.
“We are looking forward to being a part of NinePoint Medical’s success in bringing this new imaging technology to market,” said Curt Weinstein, vice president and general manager, Corning Advanced Optics and Specialty Materials. “We are excited to bring Corning’s long history of excellence in the development of optics to NinePoint to help develop industry leading devices for OCT imaging that add to the clinical care of patients.”
Further expanding the expertise on the board of directors, Mr. Miller has previously held senior positions with Siemens, Carl Zeiss, Analogic Corporation and LightLab Imaging, and brings a wealth of international operating experience to NinePoint’s board of directors. Mr. Stautberg joins NinePoint’s board with more than 30 years of medical device sales and marketing experience from Boston Scientific Corporation and Baxter Healthcare, and currently serves as a director on the board of Baxano Surgical.
About The NvisionVLE™ Imaging System
NinePoint Medical’s proprietary NvisionVLE Imaging System enables physicians and pathologists to endoscopically view real-time, high-resolution, volumetric images of organs and tissues up to 3mm deep at better than 10 micron resolution. Utilizing an advanced form of Fourier-domain optical coherence tomography (FD-OCT) also known as OFDI (optical frequency-domain imaging), NvisionVLE provides treating physicians and pathologists with cross-sectional, volumetric digital images of a patient’s organ – including below the surface of the tissue, over very large areas. This imaging information can be used to aid clinician decision-making relative to biopsy placement or treatment planning. The NvisionVLE Imaging System is indicated for use as an imaging tool in the evaluation of human tissue microstructure, including esophageal tissue microstructure, by providing two-dimensional, cross-sectional, real-time depth visualization. The safety and effectiveness of this device for diagnostic analysis (i.e. differentiating normal versus specific abnormalities) in any tissue microstructure or specific disease has not been evaluated.
Developed at the Wellman Center for Photomedicine at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), NinePoint licensed the technology in 2010 as part of the largest intellectual property agreement for medical device technology in the hospital’s history.
About NinePoint Medical, Inc.
NinePoint Medical is positioned to improve patient care through the development of medical devices that enable high resolution in-vivo imaging. The Company was founded on the ideal of convergence, of developing products that could bring together access, diagnosis and treatment. Founded in 2009 with an initial Series A of $33 million, the Company licensed the fundamental optical coherence tomography (OCT) technology from The Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) in 2010 and received its first 510(k) clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in December 2011. NinePoint launched its lead product, the NvisionVLE™ Imaging System, in the U.S. in May 2013. NinePoint is headquartered in Cambridge, Mass. For more information, please visit www.ninepointmedical.com.
About Corning Incorporated
Corning Incorporated (www.corning.com) is the world leader in specialty glass and ceramics. Drawing on more than 160 years of materials science and process engineering knowledge, Corning creates and makes keystone components that enable high-technology systems for consumer electronics, mobile emissions control, telecommunications and life sciences. Our products include glass substrates for LCD televisions, computer monitors and laptops; ceramic substrates and filters for mobile emission control systems; optical fiber, cable, hardware & equipment for telecommunications networks; optical biosensors for drug discovery; and other advanced optics and specialty glass solutions for a number of industries including semiconductor, aerospace, defense, astronomy, and metrology.
