anaLYsIs | MEDTECH r&D | knife‑eDge business
Device trials inessential
ASHLEY YEO, Principal Analyst, Informa Business Information
email
ashley.yeo@
informa.com
entrepreneurs experienced in funding bids constantly have to work to ensure a continued line of support until one of four things happen: ■ The private market accepts the product ■ The national reimbursement authorities decide in favour of it ■ A partnership with an overseas business is developed ■ A large company buys the technology pre-launch.
F 14 ❚ Even securing early funding for a
proven product is not always sufficient. It’s a scenario familiar to Alain Cornil, the
co-founder of a Côte d’Azur-based developer of a new type of laser surgery, Laser Assisted Skin Healing (LASH), which uses a CE-marked device — the Ekkylite. All the necessary development steps
had been taken, and in the right order, by Mr Cornil and the co-developer of the technology, laser medicine expert Dr Serge Mordon, when they set up the company in 2006 near Aix-en-Provence.
rench start-ups
developing medical or cosmetic devices have had a tough time of late. Good ideas are not self‑funding, and even
those Thereafter, the market began warming
to a light, hand-held, simple-to-use alternative to office-based cosmetic surgery lasers. The CE mark had been obtained and a massive scar prevention market of some 70 million interventions worldwide lay ahead.
The knife edge The key advantages of the product, which is based on controlled hyperthermia, are a powerful battery, its 'intelligence' (it cannot overdose), and its single-button operation use. 'The days when you needed a degree to handle lasers are pretty much behind us,' he says. Mr Cornil’s Ekkyo had already raised
€4.8 million in funding, which was a success in itself, but it needed more support and attention from investors. However, it came as a shock when a major investor withdrew in July, and the CEO began liquidation proceedings. A visit by Prime to the company’s
headquarters at a science park outside Aix-en-Provence in May did not leave the impression of a struggle for survival; quite the opposite. But Mr Cornil, a pragmatic character, was aware of the knife-edge funding environment in France, which he
September 2011 |
prime-journal.com increasingly
their job is long and the risks are high, but for innovators seeking market acceptance of new products, or perhaps even the holy grail
of reimbursement, success is unlikely without trials, says French device inventor and entrepreneur alain cornil. Interview by Ashley Yeo
stresses must change if small companies are to be better supported. He tells Prime that the 2009 move of
capital away from risk funding and into capital development hit start-ups hard in France — the crisis made it harder for companies to raise funds. There remains a funding gap for medtech start-ups in France, and it’s hard for them until they make sales of €1–2 million. Ekkyo had always met timelines and
had very strong pre-clinical data, and therefore, was usually able to get more cash when it needed it. That was until its strategic partner withdrew, taking with it both funds and the potential for new technologies. The strange part is that Ekkyo is left
with a practical, marketable device that represents the next generation of laser scar surgery. This illustrates, were it needed, how far beyond the extra mile developers have to go, not just to win CE marking and customer acceptance, but long-term confidence of investors to enable the developing company to take its next steps. What is now available to technology
buyers is a finished laser technology that is not heavily dependent on the user’s skill
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