Reva fixed in focus on Fantom

Reva Medical’s (ASX: RVA) recent decision to fast track the development of its ‘thin-strut’ bioresorbable scaffold, Fantom, was driven primarily by demand from clinicians for scaffolds to mirror metal drug-eluting stents.

The Fantom scaffold will replace Reva’s previous commercial candidate, ReZolve2.

The drug-eluting bioresorbable cardiac scaffolds are used to treat coronary artery disease in the same way as metal stents by releasing drugs that act to restore blood flow in diseased heart vessels.

The biodegradable scaffolds emulate the metal stents without the issues of rigidity, alteration of blood flow, loss of vascular reactivity, ongoing inflammation and other limitations the metal stents create.

“We are witnessing the conversion in an annual $4 billion market from metallic stents to the use of fully bioresorbable scaffolds, because these new devices help to restore blood flow in diseased heart vessels, then disappear when their jobs are complete,” said Reva’s CEO, Bob Stockman.

Early preclinical results indicate that the thinner dimensions of the Fantom provide improved drug delivery and healing response in patients compared with the ReZolve platform. In addition, it is less complex to make and is smaller and stronger than the ReZolve.

The first human implants of the Fantom scaffold are expected to occur by the end of 2014, with initiation of the CE Mark trial - CE Marking allows for commercial sales in Europe and other countries that recognise the mark - with the new product in 2015 and a commercialisation target of mid-2016.

Reva Medical shares were trading slightly higher at $0.18 as of around 9 am on Tuesday.