Taris reboots with $32m round for bladder tech

A year after dealing its Liris bladder treatment to Allergan in a deal worth up to $588 million, Taris Biomedical raised another $32 million to put toward the implant, which is designed to deliver drugs directly to the bladder. Allergan paid $67.5 million in cash in August 2014 for Liris, a drug-device combination designed to deliver lidocaine to treat interstitial cystitis, or bladder pain syndrome. The deal also included $295 million in development milestones and another $225 million in commercial milestones. Today Taris said it’s planning to investigate other treatments using the same implant used in Liris, funded with a $32 million round led by prior backer Flagship Ventures, joined by existing investor Polaris Venture Partners and a new backer, RA Capital Management. “The sale to Allergan of our clinical-stage treatment for interstitial cystitis in 2014 was an important validation of our revolutionary approach to treating bladder diseases,” president & CEO Purnanand Sarm said in prepared remarks. “Since then we have been working hard to build a high value therapeutically-focused urology company on this foundation. This new funding will enable us to launch multiple clinical trials over the next 12 months and further expand our team.” Taris plans to explore treatments for bladder cancer and overactive bladder segments. Sarma told Xconomy that the bladder cancer drug the company is looking at is off-patent and free to test. The O...
Source: Mass Device - Category: Medical Equipment Authors: Tags: Drug-Device Combinations Funding Roundup Taris Biomedical Venture Capital/Private Equity Source Type: news