ForSight VISION5 Names Lisa Garrett as Vice President of Finance and Administration; Clinical Data for Helios™ Insert to be Presented at American Academy of Ophthalmology
MENLO PARK, Calif., Oct. 16, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- ForSight VISION5 is pleased to announce that Lisa Garrett has joined the company as Vice President of Finance and Administration from Medtronic. Earlier this year, Medtronic acquired Corventis, Inc., for which Ms. Garrett served as Chief Financial Officer and Vice President, Human Resources. Additionally, clinical data on ForSight VISION5's Helios™ insert will be presented at the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO)—the first time that clinical data has been made publically available. ForSight VISION5 is developing non-invasive drug delivery products to replace eye drops and provide sustained therapy for major anterior segment eye diseases including glaucoma, dry eye, and allergy.
"I am excited to join ForSight VISION5 and to help contribute to the company's goals," said Ms. Garrett. "ForSight VISION5's lead product candidate has the potential to help prevent vision loss for many people."
Ms. Garrett brings over 20 years of diversified finance and human resources experience to ForSight VISION5. As Chief Financial Officer and Vice President of Human Resources at Corventis, Ms. Garrett built the financial and human resources departments over the last six years as the company grew from a start-up to a commercial company. She was also instrumental in fund-raising activities and in supporting the acquisition of the company by Medtronic. Previously, Ms. Garrett held positions of increasing responsibility in finance and accounting at Eli Lilly, Guidant Corporation, and then Sybase. Before entering the health care industry, she practiced as a Certified Public Accountant at Ernst and Young. Ms. Garrett holds a BBS in Accounting and an MBA from Indiana University.
"As we take steps toward commercialization of our lead product candidate—the Helios insert, the addition of Lisa Garrett to ForSight VISION5 greatly augments our management team," said John Maroney, CEO of ForSight VISION5. "Lisa has a proven track record of developing companies' internal financial systems and human resources to facilitate product development, commercialization and organizational growth. Lisa will also provide additional leadership as we implement our financing and business development objectives."
ForSight VISION5 has completed enrollment of over 160 subjects in its randomized, active-controlled Phase 2 Study of the Helios insert in patients with glaucoma and ocular hypertension and the last subject follow up visit is planned for next month.
For the first time, the company's Phase 1 clinical data on an early version of the investigational Helios insert will be shown at a scientific meeting. Prof. Ivan Goldberg of Sydney, Australia will present the poster titled "The Novel Topical Ocular Insert (Helios) for Sustained Delivery of Bimatoprost in Glaucoma and Ocular Hypertension (PO390)" at the American Academy of Ophthalmology on October 20, 2014 from 12:30PM to 2:00PM at McCormick Place in Chicago.
Prof. Goldberg stated, "Nearly half of patients who are prescribed eye drops to manage their glaucoma, over time do not refill their prescriptions within six months1 - often due to difficulty in using drops. The Helios insert has the potential to provide an innovative way to treat these patients who do not or cannot adhere to their eye drop regimens; the early data suggest the Insert may provide a meaningful and sustained reduction in intraocular pressure in this at-risk population."
About ForSight VISION5, Inc.ForSight VISION5, Inc. (www.forsightvision5.com), was founded in January of 2011 as the fifth company to emerge from the ophthalmic incubator ForSight Labs, LLC (www.forsightlabs.com). ForSight VISION5 is focused on developing non-invasive drug delivery products that replace eye drops and provide sustained therapy for major anterior segment eye diseases including glaucoma, dry eye, and allergy. ForSight VISION5's lead product candidate is the Helios™ insert, a novel, non-invasive delivery system designed to allow glaucoma and ocular hypertensive patients to receive medication continually. The Helios insert is restricted to investigational use only and has not been approved by the Food and Drug Administration or any other regulatory authority for commercial distribution.
Company Contact Information:Anne Brody Rubin
Vice President of Marketing
ForSight VISION5
Tel: (650) 325-2050 x119
[email protected]
www.forsightvision5.com
1 Nordstrom, BL et al. "Persistence and Adherence with Topical Glaucoma Therapy" Am J Ophthalmol 2005;140:598–606.
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SOURCE ForSight VISION5