Galway medtech company SymPhysis Medical has been awarded a $1.25 million non-dilutive grant from the Rhode Island Life Science Hub to support the US development of its releaze Drainage System, an at-home device designed to help late-stage cancer patients manage life-limiting fluid build-up in the chest.
The funding will support SymPhysis Medical in establishing a presence in Rhode Island, accelerating work toward US regulatory clearance, and building partnerships across New England’s life sciences cluster. The award is part of a new $4.5 million funding round announced this week by the Rhode Island Life Science Hub, the state-backed organisation created to strengthen Rhode Island’s life sciences sector and attract high-potential companies to the region.
Rhode Island Life Science Hub was established with a $45 million commitment from the State of Rhode Island through federal recovery funds and has now deployed more than $20 million across infrastructure, grants and incentives to grow its life sciences ecosystem. SymPhysis Medical is developing the releaze Drainage System to treat malignant pleural effusion, a common complication of advanced cancers where fluid builds up in the chest, causing severe breathlessness and chest pain.
Malignant pleural effusion is estimated to affect more than one hundred and fifty thousand people every year in the United States alone. It is associated with a high symptom burden and repeated hospital visits.
Unlike traditional indwelling pleural catheters, releaze is being designed as a port-style system with a safety-valve catheter and a compact external hub, so patients and carers can manage drainage at home with greater comfort, control, and independence. Tim Jones, co-founder and chief executive of SymPhysis Medical, said the Rhode Island award is a step change for the Galway company.
“This funding gives us the runway to put a team on the ground in the United States, complete key testing and move releaze towards first regulatory clearance,” he said.
“For Irish medtech, the northeast corridor is where many of the big decisions in cancer care are made. Having Rhode Island Life Science Hub backing us to build there is a strong signal that what we are doing for late-stage cancer patients matters, and that there is a path to scale it internationally. Malignant pleural effusion is still managed in ways that are invasive for patients and demanding on hospital services.
“Our goal is straightforward. We want a person with advanced cancer to be able to breathe more easily at home, spend less time in the hospital and feel in control of what is happening to their body.
“This grant helps us get much closer to making that a reality.” SymPhysis Medical has already attracted significant backing from Irish and European investors and health innovation programmes.
In 2022 and 2024, the company announced total funding of more than €4 million to progress releaze towards US Food and Drug Administration clearance and to support early international commercial plans. The Rhode Island Life Science Hub award adds $1.25 million, worth approximately €1.1 million at current exchange rates, bringing new US public-sector support into the company’s funding mix.
SymPhysis Medical plans to use the Rhode Island base to run elements of its clinical and commercial work in collaboration with local health systems, investors and industry partners, while continuing to grow its engineering and operations team in Galway. “This is a very positive story for Irish innovation,” Jones added.
“The company will remain headquartered in Galway, where we have built releaze from the ground up with Irish clinicians, nurses, patients and carers. Rhode Island gives us a bridge into the US market, not a replacement for what we are doing here.” The grant to SymPhysis Medical is part of Rhode Island Life Science Hub’s New Business Attraction programme, which provides non-dilutive awards to life science companies establishing a first-time presence in the state.
