Manchester Science Park based cervical cancer diagnostic specialist Zilico has today announced that it has appointed a new member to its Board of Directors.
Savvas Neophytou, is a partner of Deepbridge Capital LLP, who primarily focus on Life Sciences investments. Dr Neophytou also co-founded Acorn Partners, a joint venture between Deepbridge Capital, Alder Hey Hospital and software engineers WeAreNova.
Savvas is also a founding shareholder of a number of technology companies including Torafugu Tech and Cerneretec. Torafugu is engaged in the emerging field of data driven enablers to improve health outcomes and Cerneretec is engaged in the development of point of care diagnostics for the acute care hospital setting.
He has also been one of the original team and CEO of Now Healthcare Group, with the online doctor platform Dr Now. Prior to that he had a long career in the City, working for 15 years as an investment banker and ECM at JP Morgan, Bear Stearns, Shore Capital, Cantor Fitzgerald and Panmure Gordon.
Speaking about the appointment Savvas, said: "We are delighted to be represented on the board of Zilico and we look forward to sharing in its future success. The company's lead product ZedScan makes cervical cancer detection more accurate and less cumbersome whilst providing significant cost saving to overburdened global health systems.
“The product is already CE marked and selling in the U.K. with further geographical opportunities on the immediate horizon. Providing support to high quality scale-ups with excellent IP-backed products making them available for global markets is part of the DNA of Deepbridge Capital. Scaling up is not a spectator sport, we look forward to an active involvement in the next stage of Zilico's growth."
ZedScan™ is a portable, handheld device that can measure and detect tissue changes in women identified with an abnormal smear test.
The system uses patented Electrical Impedance Spectroscopy (EIS) to detect the development of pre-cancerous abnormalities of the cervix, known as cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN).
It offers real-time and more accurate detection of pre-cancerous cells than standard colposcopy (a procedure for examining the cervix), enabling clinicians to make better informed decisions at a patient’s first visit.
The new board appointment comes soon after the company announced it had introduced a number of structural changes to strengthen its management team, including the appointment of a Sales Director (GB), Head of Operations and a Quality Manager. Zilico will also sell ZedScan directly to UK hospitals rather than through a third party distributor.
Zilico’s CEO Sameer Kothari, said: “Savvas is a valuable addition to our board and we are extremely delighted to welcome him to the Zilico team. We have an exciting year ahead and it is a great time for him to be joining us.”
Cervical cancer is the 7th most common disease globally, and the third most prevalent in women. The disease is caused by the persistent high-risk human papillomavirus (HPV) infection, which triggers changes in the cervical cells.
For more information visit https://zilico.co.uk/