Foldax Named Among Fierce Medtech’s “Fierce 15” Companies of 2020
May 7, 2021
Foldax was named by Fierce Medtech as one of the 2020 “Fierce 15,” designating it as one of the most promising private companies in the medical technology industry.
“BioUtah congratulates Foldax on this well-deserved recognition, which is all the more impressive amid the challenges of a pandemic,” said Kelvyn Cullimore, president and CEO of BioUtah.
Foldax is reinventing every aspect of the heart valve, from material to design to manufacturing. Its mission is to develop surgical and transcatheter heart valves designed to last a lifetime that address historical tradeoffs, such as durability, disease risk, complications, manufacturing challenges and patient quality of life infringements.
“Each member of this year’s class of ‘Fierce 15’ stands out in a different way, but they all overcame a year of unforgettable obstacles, making each of their successes that much more significant — and all have the potential to deliver changes in healthcare that promise to outlast this pandemic,” said Conor Hale, associate editor of Fierce Medtech.
The company’s Tria valve portfolio incorporates a new, proprietary biopolymer – LifePolymerTM – with innovative valve designs intended to resist calcification, withstand stresses and strains without failure, and restore patient quality of life without lifelong use of anticoagulants. The Tria valves are the first biopolymer heart valves ever approved by the FDA for human study. Tria is also the first and only artificial heart valve to be robotically produced, which is intended to improve precision, repeatability and quality, and create a more efficient heart valve manufacturing process.
Each year Fierce Medtech evaluates hundreds of private companies from around the world for its annual “Fierce 15” list. The full list of 2020 “Fierce 15” winners can be viewed here.