Corvida Medical, an emerging medical device corporation creating technologies to ensure a safer environment for healthcare providers and their patients, has launched a multi-center research study.
Funded by the National Cancer Institute (NCI) as part of a series of Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grants, the aim of the study is to demonstrate the improvements that Corvida’s new technology could bring to the safe handling of hazardous drugs.
Corvida is now seeking study participants to join the country’s leading cancer centers in a one day evaluation of the medical devices used to improve safe handling of hazardous drugs.
Over 5.5 million healthcare workers are at risk of exposure annually to hazardous pharmaceuticals during the preparation and delivery of chemotherapy. Studies have shown that exposure to these hazardous drugs can cause serious health problems, "such as cancers, reproductive and developmental problems…and other adverse events that can be irreversible even after low-level exposures," according to the Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA), National Institute of Occupational Safety & Health (NIOSH), and Joint Commission.
The research partners involved in this study represent key opinion leaders in the field of oncology pharmacy and nursing who continuously pursue advances in cancer care and the processes used to deliver that care to patients.
The Corvida NCI-funded SBIR study will evaluate improvements that the company’s Closed System Transfer Device (CSTD) technology could bring to the safe handling of hazardous drugs. NIOSH has defined a CSTD as a drug transfer device that mechanically prohibits the transfer of environmental contaminants into the system and the escape of hazardous drug or vapor concentrations outside the system.
The NCI has awarded a series of grants totaling just under $5 million to Corvida Medical in full support of the company’s initiatives to make cancer care safer via a proprietary suite of patented medical devices, including most recently a $3 million NCI Bridge Award. Grant funding provides sites with payment for participation as well as opportunities to collaborate in publication of findings.
Kent Smith, President and CEO of Corvida Medical, commented, "The grants from the NCI will help us advance Corvida’s soon-to-be-launched family of Halo™ brand CSTD products. The NCI SBIR study is a significant effort by the company to get leading cancer institutions in the U.S. to explore applications of Halo and to demonstrate forward movement in safe handling."