Olympus grows respiratory portfolio with acquisition of Veran Medical Technologies, Inc.
Olympus Corporation Director, Representative Executive Officer, President and CEO Yasuo Takeuchi announced that it has entered into an agreement to acquire Veran Medical Technologies, Inc., a provider of advanced medical devices specializing in interventional pulmonology.
The acquisition will be implemented through Olympus subsidiary Olympus Corporation of the Americas (OCA) and will be the latest in a series of strategic acquisitions designed to strengthen Olympus’ position as a global medical device company.
As part of Olympus’ Corporate Strategy, unveiled in November 2019, the company vowed to “focus and scale” its therapeutic solutions division. To accelerate the process and provide greater agility, Olympus made OCA the company’s therapeutic division headquarters, recognizing the significant growth opportunities in North America. The company also identified three core medical fields to prioritize —gastroenterological endotherapy devices, urological devices, and respiratory devices. The VMT acquisition is centered on respiratory devices and will position Olympus as a leader in this field. Olympus’ endoscope technologies will combine with VMT’s navigation products to develop solutions for improved diagnosis of peripheral lung cancer.
Lung cancer affects the highest number of cancer patients and is the leading cause of cancer related deaths globally. With increased awareness and more lung cancer screenings done by low-dose computed tomography (CT), the need for definitive diagnosis of lesions in the peripheral regions of the lungs by tissue biopsy is expected to increase. Combined with Olympus’ technology, VMT’s navigational platform and proprietary devices support this need.
