PneumRx lands $33M for lung device

Gearing up for a pivotal trial of its RePneu Lung Volume Reduction Coil system, Mountain View, CA-based PneumRx has $33 million in working capital commitments. Forbion Capital Partners and Endeavour Vision led the round. The company's lung device is designed to improve lung function in emphysema patients by implanting Nitinol coils into the lungs to compress damaged tissue and restore elastic recoil to the lung, according to the company's release.

The RePneu LVRC System has already received CE Mark approval in Europe; 1,500 coils have been implanted in 170 procedures to date. PneumRx plans to begin a late-stage trial of the system in early 2011 and will file for FDA approval when testing is completed. The funding will be used to support clinical trials of RePneu LVRC, and to expand commercialization of the device in Europe.

"We are thrilled to have completed our Series C round and are pleased to add a top-tier med-tech corporate partner in this later financing round,"said CEO Erin McGurk. "We believe that this partnership will be extremely beneficial as PneumRx prepares for its future pivotal trial, commercialization and reimbursement efforts in the US. We also appreciate the addition of two prominent European venture firms to our board. We look forward to working more closely with Forbion and Endeavour Vision as we expand our commercial efforts in Europe."

- here's the release from PneumRx