Chordate’s board member: “Women’s health is a concern for society at large”
Caroline Brandberg, a Chordate Medical board member, participated in Feminvest’s event FEARLESS in Oslo on April 25th. During the event, she presented the company’s treatment method Ozilia for chronic migraine – a condition that tends to affect women more than men.
– Migraine is one of the leading conditions among women. To address this, more treatment options are needed, which must be made available and affordable in order for all women to have access to adequate care, says Brandberg.
Feminvest is Sweden’s largest network for female entrepreneurs and investors with approximately 50 000 members. Feminvest’s ambition is to accelerate female ownership by educating and inspiring about savings, investments and entrepreneurship.
Feminvest organises several events per year, the latest of which was FEARLESS – The Oslo Edition on April 25th. Feminvest held its first event in Oslo last year, and this year’s event focused on innovation, health and specifically women’s health.
Chordate Medical focuses on migraine
One of the sponsors of the event was the medtech company Chordate Medical, which has developed a new medical device treatment for chronic migraine. Two out of three migraine sufferers are women, which is believed to be linked to hormonal changes.
There is a great need for new treatment options for migraine, especially since it leads to suffering for those affected, and gives rise to large healthcare costs, loss of production and burdens on the national economy.
Investments and new innovations in this area could not only reduce the costs to society, but also improve the quality of life of those affected.
Insights from Caroline Brandberg
BioStock contacted Caroline Brandberg, board member at Chordate Medical, to delve deeper into the company’s participation in the Feminvest event in Oslo and its migraine treatment.
First of all, in your view, why is women’s health an important area for entrepreneurs and investors?
– Women’s health encompasses a broad and growing market with a diversity of needs and demand for different products and services. This means that there are significant opportunities for entrepreneurs to develop innovative solutions and products that can meet women’s specific health needs.
– Investing in women’s health can also be seen as a social responsibility and a commitment to promoting gender equality. By supporting innovations and businesses that focus on women’s health, entrepreneurs and investors can help reduce health inequalities, promote women’s economic and social empowerment, and increase access to care and resources for women worldwide.
– Women’s health is not only a concern at the individual level, but also for society and economies at large. Investing in women’s health can generate long-term growth and sustainability.
If we specifically look at migraine – what is the need for new innovations in that area?
– Many patients are not satisfied with their current migraine treatment. For some, the effect of the treatment decreases, while for others, the side effects are so severe that they opt to discontinue their current treatment. Some treatments can also be problematic for women who are pregnant or planning on becoming pregnant.
– Therefore, it is important to have several different treatment options on the market to be able to help as many people as possible in the best possible way. Especially those suffering from chronic migraine.
Why is Chordate’s treatment Ozilia an interesting innovation in the field?
– One in seven people suffers from migraine, which corresponds to about 15 per cent of the world’s population. Migraine is primarily a women’s health issue, as two thirds of patients are women. It is also a very costly condition for society, both in terms of healthcare costs (20 per cent) and lost productivity (80 per cent).
– Chordate’s treatment Ozilia is neither a drug nor an injection; it is mechanical neurostimulation that has a much better side effect profile than other treatments on the market – the number of adverse events or safety issues reported is significantly lower with Ozilia.
– Ozilia has the same or better effect as existing alternatives. The decrease in the number of days with headaches or migraine is as good or even better with Ozilia. It also has the same or better treatment response – that is, the number of patients in the study that achieve more than a 30 per cent reduction in headache days is as good or better with Ozilia.
What did you focus on in your presentation at Feminvest’s event?
– Migraine is one of the leading conditions among women. To address this, more treatment options are needed, which must be made available and affordable in order for all women to have access to adequate care.
– To achieve this, more people need to invest in the area.
Finally, what inspired you the most during Feminvest’s event in Oslo?
– To meet so many knowledgeable and committed women who are all driven to make a difference for all women in the world by increasing economic equality in society.
– Personally, I thought it was extra exciting to take part in the panel and the discussion about investments in medtech and women’s health.
The content of BioStock’s news and analyses is independent but the work of BioStock is to a certain degree financed by life science companies. The above article concerns a company from which BioStock has received financing.