News & Events
< Back to News Overview
Uptake Medical Presents Data from Safety & Feasibility Clinical Trial for Patients with Heterogeneous Emphysema at 2008 CHEST Meeting in Philadelphia
26 / 10 / 2008
Uptake Medical Corp., a developer of medical technologies for the minimally-invasive treatment of lung diseases including emphysema, announced today that it will present data from their first safety & feasibility clinical trial at the 2008 CHEST meeting in Philadelphia. The trial, completed earlier this year, was a phase I study for the company''s proprietary minimally-invasive Bronchoscopic Thermal Vapor AblationT (BTVAT) treatment for patients suffering from heterogeneous emphysema with upper lobe predominance. The study utilized a relatively low vapor dose that was applied to one lung (unilateral treatment).
The trial was conducted at two centers in Australia with world renowned thoracic physicians, Drs. Gregory Snell and Trevor Williams, MD of The Alfred Hospital, Melbourne, Victoria and Dr. Peter Hopkins of Prince Charles Hospital, Brisbane, Queensland from December 2007 to March 2008. There were 11 patients enrolled in the study with follow-up out to six months.
The results of this initial study demonstrate the safe application of thermal vapor in patients with emphysema and the feasibility of the bronchoscopic thermal vapor ablation procedure. There were no deaths or major adverse events in the 11 patients. Additionally, the total procedure time averaged only 22 minutes with the shortest procedure taking only 16 minutes.
While not an efficacy study, lung volume reduction was achieved in 82% of patients and 64% of patients showed significant improvement in at least one major pulmonary function test parameter at 6 months. Also, the majority of patients reported an increase in quality of life SGRQ index.
"Our early experience with bronchoscopic thermal vapor ablation is encouraging. The data shows an acceptable safety profile and some positive efficacy trends. Overall, we found the BTVA procedure to be easy to learn and the BTVA system simple to operate resulting in a minimal learning curve. BTVA holds the promise of a safe, simple and effective bronchoscopic approach to lung volume reduction for many patients suffering from emphysema who have limited treatment options," said Dr. Gregory Snell.
Bronchoscopic Thermal Vapor Ablation (BTVA) is a non-surgical bronchoscopic procedure that helps patients with emphysema breathe easier. BTVA achieves lung volume reduction by delivering thermal vapor through a catheter which causes the diseased portion of the lung to reduce in volume. The typical vapor delivery time is less than 10 seconds and 3 applications are typically given per lung. This non-surgical lung volume reduction allows the remaining healthy lung to expand more fully and function more normally.
"Based on these positive initial results, we are eager to gain more clinical experience and move towards providing a viable non-surgical treatment to improve the lives of patients suffering from emphysema," said King Nelson, President and CEO.
"The results from this first human study with a relatively low vapor dose and unilateral treatment are impressive. We are looking forward to further defining the efficacy of our BTVA technology in trials that are currently being conducted. BTVA regimens being evaluated include increasing the vapor dose and bilateral treatment (treating both lungs)," said Robert Barry, Founder and Chief Technology Officer.
Uptake Medical is currently conducting clinical trials in Europe and Australia.
The trial was conducted at two centers in Australia with world renowned thoracic physicians, Drs. Gregory Snell and Trevor Williams, MD of The Alfred Hospital, Melbourne, Victoria and Dr. Peter Hopkins of Prince Charles Hospital, Brisbane, Queensland from December 2007 to March 2008. There were 11 patients enrolled in the study with follow-up out to six months.
The results of this initial study demonstrate the safe application of thermal vapor in patients with emphysema and the feasibility of the bronchoscopic thermal vapor ablation procedure. There were no deaths or major adverse events in the 11 patients. Additionally, the total procedure time averaged only 22 minutes with the shortest procedure taking only 16 minutes.
While not an efficacy study, lung volume reduction was achieved in 82% of patients and 64% of patients showed significant improvement in at least one major pulmonary function test parameter at 6 months. Also, the majority of patients reported an increase in quality of life SGRQ index.
"Our early experience with bronchoscopic thermal vapor ablation is encouraging. The data shows an acceptable safety profile and some positive efficacy trends. Overall, we found the BTVA procedure to be easy to learn and the BTVA system simple to operate resulting in a minimal learning curve. BTVA holds the promise of a safe, simple and effective bronchoscopic approach to lung volume reduction for many patients suffering from emphysema who have limited treatment options," said Dr. Gregory Snell.
Bronchoscopic Thermal Vapor Ablation (BTVA) is a non-surgical bronchoscopic procedure that helps patients with emphysema breathe easier. BTVA achieves lung volume reduction by delivering thermal vapor through a catheter which causes the diseased portion of the lung to reduce in volume. The typical vapor delivery time is less than 10 seconds and 3 applications are typically given per lung. This non-surgical lung volume reduction allows the remaining healthy lung to expand more fully and function more normally.
"Based on these positive initial results, we are eager to gain more clinical experience and move towards providing a viable non-surgical treatment to improve the lives of patients suffering from emphysema," said King Nelson, President and CEO.
"The results from this first human study with a relatively low vapor dose and unilateral treatment are impressive. We are looking forward to further defining the efficacy of our BTVA technology in trials that are currently being conducted. BTVA regimens being evaluated include increasing the vapor dose and bilateral treatment (treating both lungs)," said Robert Barry, Founder and Chief Technology Officer.
Uptake Medical is currently conducting clinical trials in Europe and Australia.