Francis Medical water vapor ablation wins FDA breakthrough nod

August 2, 2023 By Sean Whooley

The Minneapolis-based company designed its proprietary, minimally invasive Vanquish therapy to treat prostate, kidney and bladder cancer.

Vanquish water vapor technology applies the thermal energy stored in drops of water to deliver targeted treatments to cancerous tissue. It takes place through a simple transurethral procedure. Francis Medical designed Vanquish to ablate cancer cells while protecting the surrounding structures. This lessens the likelihood of life-altering side effects that can come with other prostate cancer treatments.

Francis Medical remains in the process of initiating its VAPOR 2 pivotal study in support of submission for FDA clearance. The trial aims to treat 235 patients with localized, intermediate-risk prostate cancer across up to 30 U.S. centers.

“The goal of Francis Medical is to become the first line therapy of choice for patients with prostate cancer,” said Michael Kujak, president and CEO. “We are excited that the FDA has recognized the potential of our technology to be a breakthrough for patients who today face the difficult choice between addressing their cancer and avoiding the debilitating morbidities often associated with current standards of care.”

Francis Medical featured in Medical Design & Outsourcing’s list of 10 medtech startups you need to know in 2022. The company, founded in 2018, reports $80 million raised so far as of last year. That includes a $55 million Series B round in September 2021.

Filed Under: Catheters, Food & Drug Administration (FDA), Oncology, Regulatory/Compliance Tagged With: Ablation, FDA, Francis Medical