Carthera, a spin-off from Sorbonne University founded by Pr. Alexandre Carpentier and developer of SonoCloud®, an innovative ultrasound-based medical device to treat a wide range of brain disorders, today announces the appointment of Dr. Oern Stuge as chairman of its board of directors.
With the recent closing of its Series B financing round, Carthera is in a strong position to launch an ambitious phase III trial and pursue the evaluation of its SonoCloud technology in multiple clinical indications. In the next few years, the company is aiming at a first market approval for its SonoCloud-9 device for the treatment of recurrent glioblastoma and will prepare accordingly for commercial launch. In this context, Carthera has appointed Dr. Oern Stuge as chairman of its board of directors.
“We are thrilled to welcome Dr. Stuge, a trusted senior advisor and well-versed medical device expert, to head up our board of directors,” said Frederic Sottilini, CEO of Carthera. “We are about to start a pivotal trial with our SonoCloud-9 device in the treatment of glioblastoma and will be preparing for market access in the near-term. Oern is a great addition to our leadership team. He has participated in the development of several businesses, some of which he has successfully sold or listed, including a Unicorn. He will help refine the company’s strategy and make tactical decisions that will enable us to accelerate our growth.”
An international executive with more than 30 years of experience, Dr. Stuge began his career as a practicing physician. He holds an MBA from the IMD (International Institute for Management Development) in Lausanne, Switzerland. He held senior positions at Abbott Laboratories Inc., and was the CEO of Medinor A/S. He then worked in different roles for Medtronic, Inc. for 12 years, and was a member of its executive committee. Under his leadership, Medtronic founded its Structural Heart Division and launched the first commercially available percutaneous heart valve in the world.
“I’m excited to join Carthera at such a crucial time for the company,” said Dr. Stuge. “With its promising clinical results and the recent successful Series B funding round, I believe the company has the potential to help patients with severe brain diseases. I am looking forward to being part of the journey, and based on my experience in the medical device industry, helping the team in meeting its goals to improve treatment options for patients with significantly unmet medical needs.”
About SonoCloud®
SonoCloud is an innovative medical device developed by Carthera. It emits ultrasound to temporarily increase the permeability of the blood vessels in the brain to improve the delivery of therapeutic molecules. Invented by Pr. Alexandre Carpentier and developed in collaboration with the Laboratory of Therapeutic Applications of Ultrasound (Laboratoire Thérapie et Applications Ultrasonores, LabTAU, INSERM) in Lyon, France, SonoCloud is an implant inserted into the skull and activated prior to injection of a therapeutic agent. A few minutes of low-intensity ultrasound opens the blood brain barrier for several hours and increases the concentration of therapeutic molecules in the brain. This ultrasound-induced opening of the blood-brain barrier is a world first; it offers a new treatment option for a wide range of indications, including brain tumors and Alzheimer’s disease.
The safety and efficacy of the investigational use of the SonoCloud has not yet been determined, the device has not yet received EMA or FDA approval.