ALISO VIEJO, Calif.—ViaLase, Inc., a clinical stage medical technology company focused on addressing unmet needs in the conventional glaucoma treatment paradigm, announced the appointments of Tom Frinzi as executive chairman of the board, Richard Lewis, MD, as chief medical officer, Shawn O’Neil as chief commercial officer, and Brendan O’Herlihy as vice president, global commercial operations. The executives will play key roles at ViaLase as the company develops its novel, non-invasive, femtosecond laser with integrated OCT imaging that is accurate to the micron level.

This OCT-guided femtosecond laser technology is designed to perform the first femtosecond laser, image-guided, high-precision trabeculotomy (FLigHT) procedure for the treatment of primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG).

“I am thrilled to welcome Tom, Rick, Shawn and Brendan to ViaLase,” said Tibor Juhasz, PhD, founder and CEO of ViaLase, Inc. “Their significant industry and commercialization experience compliments the level of optical and laser engineering experience we have in the foundational team. This puts ViaLase in a position of strength as we prepare for CE Mark and FDA 510k clearance.

 
 (L to R) Richard Lewis, MD; Shawn O’Neil; and Brendan O’Herlihy.
"As we transition from an internally-focused development stage company to an externally-focused commercial organization, I am confident that ViaLase has the talent in place to bring novel technology to glaucoma patients with a best-in-class global strategy,” Juhasz said.

Frinzi has nearly 40 years of experience leading Fortune 500 corporations as well as small-to mid-size private equity enterprises in their transition to next-level growth organizations. “What excites me about joining ViaLase is that the company has the potential to truly change the way that glaucoma is managed with this transformative technology,” said Frinzi.

Dr. Lewis is an internationally renowned ophthalmologist, glaucoma specialist and researcher. The practice he co-founded, Sacramento Eye Consultants of Sacramento California, was one of the first to offer LASIK surgery and is one of the leading clinical research practices in the U.S., having participated in more than 100 cataract and glaucoma clinical trials. He is a former president of the American Glaucoma Society and the American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery and the former chief medical officer of Aerie Pharmaceuticals.

O’Neil is an ophthalmic industry veteran who has spent nearly 30 years commercializing products at both large-cap and start-up organizations. O’Herlihy has 30 years of leadership and management experience in medical device manufacturing; clinical development; and technical, operational, and commercial support.