Novasys Medical is dedicated to the singular task of improving the quality of women’s lives. The company is on the verge of delivering a novel therapy for the treatment of stress urinary incontinence (SUI) – a condition that affects some 12.5 million American women of all ages.

Although the problem of SUI is not new, Novasys’ approach to solving the problem is. According to President & CEO Debra Reisenthel, “Current treatment options such as ‘adult diapers,’ pharmaceutical therapies and surgical procedures all have severe limitations. Either they don’t do enough for the patient, offering only temporary relief – or they go too far, requiring that patients endure high-cost surgery often resulting in severe discomfort.”

Novasys offers an alternative: A simple outpatient, non-surgical, 10-minute procedure that is easy for medical professionals to learn and use. “Not only is the treatment fast, but patients can immediately return to virtually all day-to-day activities,” said Reisenthel.

It’s no wonder, then, that the innovative company attracted the interest of top-tier VC investors such as JP Morgan, Invesco Private Capital, Delphi Ventures and others. This financial backing gave the company the support it needed to pursue the development and commercialization of its revolutionary new treatment, the Novasys Micro-remodeling™ System.

But commercializing this treatment is no small task. Bringing it to market means undergoing critical clinical trials that enable the company to gain the necessary government approvals in the U.S. and Europe. Although the company had strong backing from its venture capital investors, their existing equity dollars were not providing enough runway for the company to complete its clinical trial phase.

Reisenthel was then faced with a choice: Should Novasys take on a bridge loan from its existing VC investors? Or, should the company take on venture debt? The company’s original investors were willing to bridge the promising company through this important time; however, additional equity was not the answer Reisenthel was looking for.

“Taking on additional equity dollars would have meant accepting painful dilution,” said Reisenthel. “Alternatively a venture loan offered a lower-cost method for us to gain the extra time needed to complete our testing phase. Since we felt confident that we were going to achieve success with our testing, we didn’t feel that taking on an additional equity investment was the right approach. We knew that once we achieved this next milestone, we could gain a real uplift in valuation at our next VC financing round, without sacrificing any additional company ownership.”

Reisenthal recognized, however, that not all venture debt was equal. Ensuring that the venture lender understood Novasys’ business was critical. “As an emerging company, we are often faced with new challenges. Sometimes these challenges mean a sudden change in plans or the need for more time to complete a given task. We needed to make sure that we partnered with a lender that understood the nature of our business and could ride the inevitable waves that come with bringing a new treatment to market.”

“Lighthouse turned out to be the ideal fit. Because they understand our market space and what it takes to commercialize a treatment like ours, they were able to give us the runway we need to make it happen. They didn’t just look at the ‘numbers.’ They evaluated us as a true investment.”

The loan from Lighthouse gave Novasys the runway it needed. With a successful clinical testing phase behind them, the company went on to complete an oversubscribed Series C round of $27 million earlier this year. And now with commercialization of the Novasys’ treatment on the horizon, the company is one step closer to fulfilling their goal of improving women’s lives worldwide.

To learn more, visit the company’s website at www.novasysmedical.com.