LEXINGTON, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--TARIS Biomedical®, a specialty pharmaceutical company developing innovative, targeted therapies to treat bladder diseases with high unmet medical need, announced today that it has raised an additional $12.5 million financing round through its existing investors, Flagship Ventures, Flybridge Capital Partners, Polaris Partners and Third Rock Ventures. Including this round, TARIS® has raised a total of $49.8M.
“This financing round enables continued clinical advancement of our lead product candidate, LiRIS® (Lidocaine Releasing Intravesical System), in patients with Interstitial Cystitis and further confirms our commitment to finding effective treatments for this debilitating disease,” said Purnanand Sarma, PhD, President and CEO, TARIS Biomedical®.
In a separate release issued today, TARIS® announced dosing of its first patient in its second randomized, placebo controlled Phase 2 study of LiRIS® in Interstitial Cystitis. This study is being conducted in the US and Canada, and is currently open for enrollment.
In addition to Interstitial Cystitis, TARIS® is developing a pipeline of novel, targeted therapies designed to treat a variety of bladder diseases, such as bladder cancer and urinary incontinence, utilizing its novel targeted bladder delivery system.
About Bladder Disease
Bladder diseases, which are difficult to treat with systemic therapies, affect 60 million people in the U.S. alone. These diseases include interstitial cystitis (IC)/bladder pain syndrome (BPS), bladder cancer, overactive bladder, urinary tract infections and chronic pelvic pain syndromes.
About Interstitial Cystitis (IC)/ Bladder Pain Syndrome (BPS)
Interstitial Cystitis (IC)/Bladder Pain Syndrome (BPS) are complex bladder diseases associated with significant pain and disability, as well as urinary urgency and/or frequency. People with severe cases of IC/BPS may urinate 25-60 times a day, including frequent nighttime urination, also called nocturia. IC/BPS can dramatically impact quality of life, including loss of work and reduced sexual intimacy; it is associated with suicidal rates five-to-seven times the national average. New therapeutic options for IC/BPS are desperately needed. As many as 8 million women in the U.S. alone experience symptoms consistent with IC/BPS (RAND Interstitial Cystitis Epidemiology (RICE) study, 2009; Parsons, 2004), for which only two medications are approved, both associated with significant limitations.
About TARIS Biomedical®
TARIS Biomedical® is a clinical stage specialty pharmaceutical company focused on developing a pipeline of innovative treatments for bladder diseases. Current therapies for these conditions are characterized by limited efficacy and/or systemic side effects. TARIS Biomedical®’s delivery platform is designed to improve treatment by providing controlled, sustained delivery of drug directly to target tissues. TARIS®’s most advanced product candidate, LiRIS®, is currently in Phase 2 clinical development for the treatment of Interstitial Cystitis.
TARIS Biomedical®’s technology was developed by internationally renowned scientists from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Robert Langer and Michael Cima. Based in Lexington, MA, TARIS® is backed by leading venture capital firms Flagship Ventures, Flybridge Capital Partners, Polaris Partners and Third Rock Ventures. For more information, visit www.tarisbiomedical.com.
Contacts
TARIS Biomedical®
Christopher Searcy, Pharm.D, MBA, 781-676-7750
Chief Business Officer
or
Media Contact:
Gina Nugent, 617-460-3579
nugentcomm@aol.com
