Focal Therapeutics Inc., a medical device company in the Bay Area, has hired an Orange County-based chief executive and plans to establish a presence in Aliso Viejo.
Word of the new office followed the hire of Steven Gex last month.
Gex, who declined an interview request last week, has founded and run several OC medical device companies, including Aliso Viejo-based BioLucent Inc.
BioLucent made the MammoPad, a cushion used during mammograms to relieve discomfort. Gex was in charge when it was sold in 2007 to Hologic Inc., a Bedford, Mass.-based women’s healthcare device maker, for $70 million.
BioLucent had split off its brachytherapy device business into Cianna Medical Inc. before its sale to Hologic.
Cianna makes the Savi device, which places radiation at the source of breast cancer, and remains based in Aliso Viejo.
Familiar Faces
Gex’ move to Focal brings him back in contact with some familiar faces.
“Steve and I have previously worked together on a variety of successful medical device startup companies,” said George Hermann, Focal’s president.
Gex and Hermann worked with Dr. Gail Lebovic, a breast surgeon who serves as Focal’s chief medical officer, at previous career stops.
Focal makes BioZorb, a device used as a surgical marker for breast cancer. BioZorb is made of absorbable material and inserted into a patient’s breast by a surgeon to identify a tumor.
BioZorb “clearly identifies the surgical site and is useful in radiation treatment planning, patient positioning and follow up,” according to the company.
BioZorb is compatible with traditional radiation treatments for breast cancer, “but it is also useful with advanced radiation techniques that are becoming more desirable in the treatment of breast cancer.”
Privately held Focal, which does not disclose financial data, has regulatory clearance for sales of BioZorb from the Food and Drug Administration.
Focal’s early clinical work “has been very promising, and clearly it has reached the point where it is ready for much broader commercialization,” Gex said in a statement.
BioZorb “fits perfectly with the trends in breast cancer care to reduce treatment times and minimize radiation exposure,” he said.
Focal will also maintain an office in Portola Valley, where company President Hermann will head up research and development and operations.
