Taris Biomedical completes Phase I study of bladder drug-device combo

Taris Biomedical said it successfully completed the first phase of clinical trials of its drug-device combination to treat bladder problems, but declined to release any details of the study pending scientific publication.

The Lexington, Mass.-based firm said the study of its Liris device, which stands for “lidocaine-releasing intravesical system,” was aimed at evaluating the safety, tolerability and retention of the system in the bladder for treating interstitial cystitis. Also known as painful bladder syndrome, IC involves chronic inflammation of the bladder wall.

Taris COO Christine Bunt said the study establishes proof-of-concept and sets the stage for a Phase II trial of the device next year.

The company launched in June with $15 million in venture fund backing. Taris is an MIT spinoff involving two well-known scientists from the institute, Michael Cima and Robert Langer; Cima is the company’s co-founder and Langer sits on its board.

Langer said the study “opens up the potential of this drug-device convergence system, beyond IC, into a variety of bladder diseases such as bladder cancer and overactive bladder,” according to a press release.

Earlier this month, Taris tapped Julie Lekstrom Himes to be its chief medical officer and lead its clinical development program.