Medical device supplier Taiwan Biomaterial Co (台生材) is counting on two new devices — the foamy gun and the stroke interventional device — to drive growth as they could address unmet clinical needs, while the company hopes to turn a profit within three years, chief executive officer Liao Chun-jen (廖俊仁) said yesterday.
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in April granted Taiwan Biomaterial marketing approval for the stroke interventional device, which can help doctors remove blood clots from the brain, Liao said.
For people who had an ischemic stroke, the physical removal of the blockage would help them recover better than clot-busting drugs, Liao said, adding that it has proved to work the best within six hours after a stroke.
The device has great potential as few companies produce it, he said.
Taiwan Biomaterial plans to cooperate with US medical company Incept LLC to manufacture the device and market it in the US this year, he said.
The company last year also gained marketing approval for its foamy gun from Taiwanese regulators, he said.
The device, which produces a highly porous foamy gel made out of collagen mixed with high-pressure gas, can be used for dura reconstruction after surgeries, he said.
The company is in talks with the local regulator to see if it could be included in the public health insurance program, which would mean adopting a different marketing strategy, he said.
“If we join the [public health insurance] program, more patients are likely to use the gun, but the selling price per gun would be lower than if we stick to the self-pay system. We are still in the process of deciding whether to join the program or not,” Liao said.
The company reported a net loss of NT$60.54 million (US$1.93 million) for last year, or minus-NT$2.02 per share.
In the first quarter of this year, it posted a net loss of NT$17.07 million, or minus-NT$0.57 per share.
The company, which first traded on the Emerging Stock Board in August 2017, made its debut on the Taipei Exchange (TPEX) yesterday.
With a listing price of NT$42, Taiwan Biomaterial shares surged 15 percent to close at NT$48.3, TPEX data showed.
The company, which focuses on the development of implantable medical devices, was spun off from the Industrial Technology Research Institute (工研院) seven years ago.
Like another pharmaceutical firm, EirGenix Inc (台康生技), Taiwan Biomaterial won approval thanks to a recommendation letter from the Industrial Development Bureau, which allowed it to bypass some listing requirements on sales, earnings and cash flow.
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