December 15, 2011

Dr. Sharon Kehoe Awarded Early Stage Commercialization Funding

Drs. Bob Abraham, Sharon Kehoe and Daniel Boyd

Dr. Sharon Kehoe, post-doctoral fellow in the Department of Applied Oral Sciences, along with co-investigators Drs. Daniel Boyd and Bob Abraham, has been awarded Phase II Early Stage Commercialization Funding from Innovacorp for “Product Development of the OccluDel Embolic Delivery System and OccluRad Pre-filled Capsules”.

This funding will progress the development of a delivery-on-demand system for radiopaque particles called OccluRad. OccluRad, a radiopaque biomaterial, may be injected into blood vessels in order to block blood flow to a target tissue (a process called embolization). Embolization is used for therapies such as cutting off blood flow to a tumor or to stop uncontrolled bleeding. Since OccluRad is intrinsically radiopaque its placement can be monitored using conventional imaging techniques without the need for contrast dyes. The initial target application for OccluRad is the treatment of uterine fibroids.

Creation of a delivery system for OccluRad will enable clinicians to rapidly inject the particles without having to prepare or mix the suspension manually beforehand. This will simplify clinical procedures and aide in producing consistent delivery of particles during the embolization treatment of uterine fibroids.