SFC Fluidics to use $1.4 million grant to develop dual-hormone patch pump

Fayetteville-based medical technology company SFC Fluidics has received a $1.4 million grant to support the development of a dual-hormone patch pump for diabetes patients.

Worldwide, more than 4 million people have insulin-dependent Type 1 diabetes, and the number is expected to rise. Maintaining proper glycemic control is especially challenging for young patients who must undergo multiple needle sticks to measure blood glucose levels and deliver the necessary doses of insulin or glucagon. SFC’s proposed patch pump system will have the needed safety features and dose accuracy to allow automated insulin and glucagon dosing to achieve fine-tuned glycemic control in patients with Type 1 diabetes.

SFC’s ePump system can control the delivery of insulin and glucagon in a patch pump that’s the size of existing insulin-only patch pumps. Another feature of the proposed system is a flow confirmation sensor that determines whether dose administration has occurred as expected in real-time. The sensor will alert to problems with the patch pump, including occlusions, leaks, depleted drug supply, accidental misloading and mechanical or technical failures.

“The suite of patents and patent applications that covers SFC Fluidics’ system — from the pump to the values to the sensors — will allow for development of a next generation dual-hormone patch pump that combines safety, convenience and small size with excellent accuracy and precision,” said Dr. Forrest Payne, principal investigator on the project.

“We think the proposed system will be especially attractive to adolescents with Type 1 diabetes and will serve the broader diabetic community as well,” said Greg Lamps, SFC’s vice president of product realization. “What’s more, we see the dual-hormone drug delivery system as a vital part of a future state-of-the-art artificial pancreas.”

Recently, SFC established a partnership with JDRF to develop an insulin patch pump with open-protocol communication. JDRF, a global organization that funds Type 1 diabetes research, will provide funding to SFC with the goal to develop and deliver to market a fully interoperable, open-protocol insulin pump.