Asthma and COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease) are common chronic obstructive lung disorders that affect over 50 million people in the US. While surgical resection remains the treatment of choice, reduced lung function and poor lung capacity make it a high-risk procedure. Recent technological advancements in surgery have resulted in the development of a range of new techniques that have reduced patient trauma, shortened hospitalization, and improved diagnostic accuracy and therapeutic outcome. In a quest to do just that, Sanovas, Inc., an innovative California based medical device company, is developing the next generation of minimally invasive surgical tools and cancer treatment technologies targeting pulmonary disease and numerous other medical specialties.
Sanovas is redefining intervention with access, imaging, and measurement technologies that enable physicians to safely perform advanced, multi-instrumental and multi-modal diagnostic and therapeutic procedures. The company is dedicated to developing a full continuum of best-in-class minimally invasive diagnostic and therapeutic technologies and solutions that are affordable, accessible, and safe across multiple procedures and specialty areas. These procedures will make localized, interventional treatments for lung cancer and other serious diseases available to millions of people, globally reducing the need for open surgeries and cancer treatments that create systemic toxicity and side effects.
Their revolutionary, patented products enable surgeons to visualize, diagnose, measure and treat obstructed passageways in areas of the body that are inaccessible using currently marketed surgical tools. Their products are designed to provide surgeons with faster, less invasive, lower risk and more cost-effective interventional treatment options.
At the heart of Sanovas’ scientific advancements is the miniaturization of tools for minimally invasive surgery. Sanovas’ products extend access beyond current limits enabling surgeons to perform therapeutic intervention in small, one-millimeter diameter regions of the anatomy that were previously inaccessible.
The Inspiration
Sanovas was founded with the humanitarian inspiration to treat and cure lung cancer and related pulmonary diseases. The genesis for this inspiration was rooted in the real-life experiences of Sanovas’ Founder and CEO, Larry Gerrans, who lost a mother figure to lung cancer and watched a dear friend almost die from an asthma attack.
Larry has been a leader and a pioneer in the surgical arts since the early 1990’s. He has collaborated in the development of several surgical procedures and related technologies that are now considered as gold standards for patient care. Larry sought to create technological solutions to improve patient care in lung cancer, asthma, and pulmonary disease after he realized that the technology solutions available for Interventional Pulmonary specialty were limited.
“Industry and government are converging on interventional pulmonology, a relatively new field of pulmonary medicine. We are making it a national priority, and we are going to get this right. The impact of chronic non-communicable pulmonary disease on the US GDP is colossal. We are going to lessen that impact,” assures Larry.
Sanovas’ Odyssey
Sanovas has taken a path less traveled if ever traveled. The company’s journey has been fueled by Larry’s passion and tenacity.
“Our journey has been exciting and exhausting! I have never worked so hard for so long. Frankly, it should not be this hard to build a company in America!” says Larry.
Sanovas’ biggest challenge has been capital formation. The United States capital markets have been broken since the dotcom bust in 2000. The foundational constructs that gave rise to innovation capital in the 1980’s and 1990’s no longer exist. American companies are operating under antiquated security laws dating back to 1933 & 1934. The Tax Policies no longer incentivize investors to invest in the emerging growth. Consequently, this also had a major impact on Sanovas. Sanovas is fully funded through the support of Larry’s network of friends and family. “Suffice to say that this has been a highly rewarding experience. We are proving that we can build a company by the people and for the people!” shares Gerrans. Despite the challenges, they are building a model for how capitalism in America can still exist and how well-intentioned people can come together to make a socially responsible investment in humanitarian causes to treat and cure the diseases that are impacting and taking numerous lives.
Distinctive Offerings
Sanovas is creating the next generation of minimally invasive surgical technologies that are both affordable and portable. The company’s innovative solutions include the MicroCam™ endoscopic imaging system. The MicroCam platform of surgical cameras has reduced 90% of the equipment required for generating an endoscopic image and has further lowered the cost of procurement by approximately 80%. This is proving to be a highly disruptive technology in the patient care industry. The MicroCam platform has been diversified into a number of surgical technologies and tools that have enabled the company to structure a portfolio of subsidiary companies to address unique diseases throughout the body.
The process of developing technologies to treat and cure lung diseases required Larry and his team to create small diameter, highly sophisticated tools to navigate and treat the highly inaccessible regions in the lungs. Sanovas has since expanded the utility of these innovative solutions to improve the diagnostic and therapeutic proficiencies to meet the unmet needs in performing small diameter procedures throughout the body. Sanovas’expertise and experience and the vast variety of clinical relationships and advisors have influenced and inspired their decision making and technology development initiatives. Sanovas’ commercial business is segmented into business units that leverage cost-effective delivery of advanced diagnostic and therapeutic interventions enabled by their core micro technology platforms. Each business unit focuses on a specific target audience:
ViaTM –Working Channels, VasZeppelinTM –Smart Catheters, MicroCamTM –Imaging Technologies, StablePathTM –Catheter Anchoring Technology, PhysioSenseTM –Physiologic Measurement Systems, CytoVasTM –Tissue Collection Technology, NanoVasTM –Local Therapy Delivery Systems
Future Prospects
Larry has gathered his network of friends and family to join him in his quest to advance patient care, to invest in his life’s work to treat and to cure lung Cancer and other diseases.
Sanovas has over 150 Multi-National Patents that have generated over 200 products. Sanovas has structured a joint venture for the surgical cure for asthma with Mayo Clinic and has partnered with physicians from the Harvard Medical School to innovate technologies for diagnosing diabetic retinopathy. Furthermore, it has structured an R&D and an investment relationship with the Peoples’ Government of Suzhou, China, to expand its capital formation and business interests at the Suzhou Institute for Nano-Technologies and Nano-Bionics (SINANO) at the Chinese Academy of Sciences in the Suzhou Industrial Park/BioBay.
Phenomenal growth will be seen in the global healthcare market in the coming years. By 2030, over 4.9 Billion global citizens will be able to access and afford advanced medical treatments and intervention. Demographically, the growth is occurring. Technologically, Sanovas is building the solutions these patients in the emerging markets will be able to access and afford. The company is initially targeting the pulmonary market, which includes treatment of lung cancer, COPD, asthma, and cystic fibrosis. Future addressable markets include treatment of diseases and disorders of the six major organ systems of the tubular anatomy. “We have a 20-year plan for our company. We are building a family as much as a company”, concludes Larry.
