Sequana Medical Announces the Appointment of Dr. Oliver Gdje as Chief Medical Officer – BioSpace

GHENT, Belgium, May 04, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Sequana Medical NV (Euronext Brussels: SEQUA), an innovator in the management of fluid overload in liver disease, malignant ascites and heart failure, today announces the appointment of Oliver Gdje, MD, PhD, as Chief Medical Officer, with immediate effect. Dr Gdje replaces Gijs Klarenbeek, MD, who remains with Sequana Medical as Senior Medical Advisor.

Dr Gdje is a highly experienced clinician and medtech industry executive with 18 years of international experience in medical and commercial roles. Prior to joining Sequana Medical, Dr Gdje served as Chief Medical Officer at Humedics GmbH, Medical Director and VP Sales & Marketing at Hepa Wash GmbH, and Medical & Marketing Director of PULSION Medical Systems AG, all medtech companies in the liver or cardiovascular field. Dr Gdje holds a PhD and Professorship in Human Medicine and built an extensive knowledge of cardiology during his time as a Cardiac Surgeon at leading German Universities. He was a Consultant and Vice Chairman of the Department of Cardiac Surgery at the University Hospital of Ulm until 2002.

Ian Crosbie, CEO of Sequana Medical, said: I am very pleased to welcome Dr Gdje to Sequana Medical. His extensive clinical experience, particularly in the heart and liver space, and his international business expertise will be invaluable as we approach a number of key milestones in our alfapump U.S. NASH and alfapump DSR heart failure development programmes. I am delighted he will be able to work alongside Gijs Klarenbeek who will continue to work extensively with us, leveraging the tremendous experience we have built up in these large potential markets.

Dr Oliver Gdje, CMO of Sequana Medical, added: I am very glad and honoured to be taking on this important role at Sequana Medical at such an exciting time for the company. Having built an extensive knowledge of both cardiac and hepatic disease over the years, I can see the enormous potential for the alfapump platform to treat fluid overload in liver disease and heart failure, as well as other potential opportunities. There is a clear unmet clinical need in those large patient populations where diuretic drugs are no longer effective.

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About Sequana Medical

Sequana Medical is a commercial stage medical device company developing the alfapump platform for the management of fluid overload in liver disease, malignant ascites and heart failure. Fluid overload is a fast growing complication of advanced liver disease driven by NASH (non-alcoholic steatohepatitis) related cirrhosis and a common complication in heart failure. The U.S. market for the alfapump resulting from NASH-related cirrhosis is forecast to exceed 3 billion annually within the next 10-20 years. The heart failure market for the alfapump DSR (Direct Sodium Removal) is estimated to be over 5 billion annually in the U.S. and EU5 by 2026. Both indications leverage Sequana Medical's alfapump, a unique, fully implanted wireless device that automatically pumps fluid from the abdomen into the bladder, where it is naturally eliminated through urination.

In the U.S., the company's key growth market, the alfapump has been granted breakthrough device designation by the FDA. The North American pivotal study (POSEIDON) in recurrent and refractory ascites due to liver cirrhosis is currently underway, and is intended to support approval of the alfapump in the U.S. and Canada. In Europe, the alfapump is CE-marked for the management of refractory ascites due to liver cirrhosis and malignant ascites and is included in key clinical practice guidelines. Over 750 alfapump systems have been implanted to date. Building on its proven alfapump platform, Sequana Medical is developing alfapump DSR, a breakthrough, proprietary approach to fluid overload due to heart failure. Clinical proof-of-concept was achieved in a first-in-human single dose DSR study and a repeated dose alfapump DSR study (RED DESERT) in heart failure patients is currently underway.

Sequana Medical is headquartered in Ghent, Belgium. For further information, please visit http://www.sequanamedical.com.

Important Regulatory Disclaimers

The alfapump has not yet received regulatory approval in the U.S. and Canada. Any statement in this press release about safety and efficacy of the alfapump does not apply to the U.S. and Canada because the device is currently undergoing clinical investigation in these territories.

DSR therapy and alfapump DSR are still in development and it should be noted that any statements in this press release regarding safety and efficacy arise from pre-clinical studies and ongoing clinical investigations which have yet to be completed. There is no link between DSR therapy, alfapump DSR and ongoing investigations with the alfapump system in Europe, the U.S. and Canada.

Forward-looking statements

This press release may contain predictions, estimates or other information that might be considered forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance. These forward-looking statements represent the current judgment of Sequana Medical on what the future holds, and are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially. Sequana Medical expressly disclaims any obligation or undertaking to release any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statements in this press release, except if specifically required to do so by law or regulation. You should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which reflect the opinions of Sequana Medical only as of the date of this press release.

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Sequana Medical Announces the Appointment of Dr. Oliver Gdje as Chief Medical Officer - BioSpace