Who We Are
Our Vision
Drastically change the face of surgical oncology so that every patient goes home cancer free
"My wife died of breast cancer in 2003. Since then, I have made it my mission to help prevent others from experiencing the same pain from cancer left behind after surgery."
Our Mission
At Lumicell, our mission is to improve the way cancer surgery is performed, starting with breast cancer. Our innovative, fluorescence-guided imaging technology is designed to illuminate cancerous tissue inside the body cavity following initial lumpectomy to help surgeons achieve a more complete surgical resection.
Goal of Surgical Resection
Cancer incidence in the US is increasing and is expected to cross 2 Million patients in 2024. There are multiple treatments for cancers with surgery as a predominant treatment. The goal of surgical resection is the eradication of cancer-both gross and microscopic.1
We believe that more can and should be done for surgical oncology care.
Imagine if surgeons could see and remove cancer cells in real-time during surgery
Lumicell recognizes the challenges surgeons face in finding and removing cancerous tissue while conserving as much healthy tissue as possible. That’s why we are committed to pioneering new technologies to help surgeons make more informed decisions in real-time.
Leadership Team
Howard Hechler
Howard joined Lumicell in 2020 and now serves as President and Chief Operating Officer. He brings 20 years of focused life-sciences experience in corporate development, strategy, and operations. Prior to Lumicell, Howard worked at Locust Walk, PolarityTE, Smith & Nephew, Medtronic, and Mallinckrodt Pharmaceuticals. Howard graduated cum laude with a B.A. from Harvard University, and received his M.B.A. and Juris Doctorate degrees from the University of Virginia.
Jorge Ferrer, PhD
Jorge joined Lumicell in 2010. He leads the company’s clinical research and strategy for cancer applications, and manages the company’s regulatory strategy, preparation of communications and reporting to the FDA. Jorge co-developed Lumicell’s optical imaging agent, LUMISIGHT™, as Senior Director of R&D at Lumicell. He also co-developed the prototype of the Lumicell Direct Visualization System™ (DVS) during his post-doctoral tenure with Dr. Moungi Bawendi at MIT. Prior to his post-graduate studies, Jorge worked as a Mechanical Design Engineer at Texas Instruments. He holds a doctorate in biological engineering and a M.S. in mechanical engineering from Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and a B.S. in mechanical engineering from University of Puerto Rico Mayagüez.
Brent Palmisano
Brent joined Lumicell in May 2022 and is responsible for building the company’s commercial strategy and organization. Brent brings more than 20 years’ experience and a demonstrated track record in building and leading medical device commercial organizations. Previously, Brent was Senior Vice President of Global Commercial Operations at DYSIS Medical, where he oversaw building the business to new heights. He also spent 15 years at Boston Scientific, where he held multiple commercial positions with increasing responsibilities, including Area Vice President of Boston Scientific’s National Accounts team and Director of Marketing and Commercial Integration, where he oversaw the development of dozens of devices. Earlier in his career, Brent spent seven years at Black and Decker in various sales and marketing positions. He holds a B.S. in marketing from the University of South Florida.
Elisabeth Carroll
Elisabeth Carroll is strategic global human resources professional with 20 years experience aligning employee performance with business strategy. She has an ability to quickly build strong partnerships with diverse leadership styles in a broad range of industries with demonstrated capability to work strategically and operationally in parallel. Previously, Elisabeth served as VP of Human Resources at Sensei Biotherapeutics to build the HR function and scale the organization after going public. At Quanterix she oversaw Human Resources as the organization scaled quickly, went public and acquired and integrated two organizations. She has deep experience supporting R&D as well as Commercialized global organizations within biotech start ups through large pharma. Elisabeth holds a Bachelors degree in Art History from Simmons University.
Daniel K. Harris, PhD
Brian Schlossberg, PhD
Brian joined Lumicell in 2018 as Director of Medical Affairs and is currently responsible for leading development of new indications for Lumicell’s fluorescence imaging technologies. He brings over 15 years of product development experience from medical device start-ups. Prior to joining Lumicell, Brian served as Director of Research and Development at Osteonovus; a medical device company developing biomaterials for spine and orthopedic indications. Brian earned his PhD in Biomedical Engineering from The University of New South Wales, where he studied in the Surgical & Orthopaedic Research Laboratories under Professor Bill Walsh.
Kate Smith
Board of Directors
Andrey Zarur, PhD
Executive Chairman,
Lumicell
CEO, Green Light Biosciences
Elon Boms
Launch Capital, LLC
Cosimo Fiorenza
Vice President & General Counsel,
Quantum Valley Investments
David Furneaux
CEO, BlueIO & Managing Partner,
Kodiak Venture Partners
Kevin Krenitsky, MD
Former COO & CCO,
Foundation Medicine
W. David Lee
Founder, Lumicell
Mike Ruettgers
Retired Chairman, Lahey Clinic
Former CEO, EMC Corporation
Board of Observers
Carlos Gonzalez
Founder, Rivas Capital
Jan Haas
President, BlueIO
Kevin Hershberger
Former President & CEO, Lumicell
Investors
