ABOUT TYPE 2 DIABETES
A GROWING GLOBAL HEALTH CRISIS
• More than 350MM people globally living with type 2 diabetes
• Diabetes is the leading cause of kidney failure, lower-limb amputations & blindness in adults
• Average annual medical expenditure > 2.3x higher for diabetics
MAJORITY OF PATIENTS ARE NOT ACHIEVING TREATMENT GOALS
• > $35Bn annual market for type 2 diabetes medical therapies
• Average type 2 patient is on more than 6 prescription medications
• Fewer than 50% of patients achieve target HbA1c
CHALLENGES TO MAINTAINING OPTIMAL MEDICAL THERAPY
• Polypharmacy result in regular tolerability issues for more than 70% of patients
• Clinical inertia delays therapy progression in 50+% of patients
• Only ~40% of patients are compliant with medical therapy after 12-24 months
A NEW PATH TO METABOLIC HEALTH
The small intestine plays a key role in regulating metabolic processes and insulin resistance. Studies have shown that up to 90% of patients who undergo bariatric surgery with duodenal exclusion achieve improved insulin resistance and glycemic control.
Digma aims to harness the power of the duodenum to empower patients and physicians with safe, simple and effective new therapies for type 2 diabetes that enable them to live longer, healthier and happier lives.
We are developing a minimally invasive therapy, Endoscopic Glycemic Management (EGM), that aims to restore the body’s natural ability to control blood glucose levels. The treatment targets the duodenal submucosa which is central to nutrient sensing and metabolic signaling.
Our product consists of a console and a single-use catheter that is compatible with the working channel of standard gastrointestinal endoscopes. The EGM procedure is being developed so that it can be performed in a standard GI endoscopy suite without requiring additional imaging equipment. Our goal is to provide patients with durable improvement in glycemic control with minimal side effects and without requiring additional daily medical therapy.
The EGM procedure is currently being evaluated in clinical studies. To learn more about our clinical program, please contact us here.
LEADERSHIP TEAM
ILAN BEN-OREN
Co-founder and CTO
Ilan brings more than 20 years of experience in R&D and management in the medical device industry. In addition to co-founding Digma, he served as founder and CTO of Eximo Medical (acquired by AngioDynamics), was the CTO of Exalenz Bioscience Ltd., (acquired by Meridian BioScience) and was CTO at Oridion Medical (acquired by Covidien). Ilan is the author of more than 40 patents and patent applications in the field of medical technologies and electro-optics. Mr. Ben-Oren holds a master’s degree in applied physics and the science of materials summa cum laude from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
SHLOMIT CHAPPEL-RAM, PhD
Vice President, R&D
Shlomit joined Digma Medical as VP of R&D in 2021 and brings more than 15 years of R&D management experience, including leading multidisciplinary teams in the development of Class II and III medical devices from early prototype to formal product development and through manufacturing transfer. Previously, Shlomit served as VP R&D at Nano-Dimension Technologies and in roles of increasing responsibility at Edwards Life Sciences and Medinol Ltd. Dr. Chappel-Ram holds a BSc (Summa Cum Laude) in Physical Chemistry, Ph.D. (Summa Cum Laude) specialized in Photo-electrochemistry and Materials Science and a MBA from Bar-Ilan University, Israel.
HILA DAGAN, PhD
Vice President,
Regulatory, Clinical and Quality
Hila has over 10 years of experience in medical device regulatory, clinical affairs and quality assurance. Prior to Digma, Hila was Vice President, Clinical and Regulatory Affairs in a wearable telemedicine startup where she built and led the regulatory strategy, clinical affairs and quality system infrastructure. Prior to that, Hila was a researcher and project manager in other medical device companies in the field of wound care and stem cells regenerative medicine. Dr. Dagan holds a PhD in Biotechnology from Tel Aviv University in the field of nano-biotechnology, an M.Sc. from Tel Aviv University and a B.Sc. in biology from The Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Mori Arkin
Arkin Holdings
Irit Yaniv, MD
Chairwoman of the Board
AccelMed & Co-founder, Digma Medical
Ilan Ben-Oren
Co-founder & CTO, Digma Medical
Eyal Dior
Tal Ventures
Anat Tsour Segal
CBG Ventures
James McNally
Independent Director
INVESTORS
Digma Medical is a privately held company backed by these leading venture capital firms
