Apreo Health Gains Medtech Veteran and Strategic Investment to Advance Novel Emphysema Therapy

MENLO PARK, CA – May 13, 2026 – Apreo Health, a clinical-stage company developing a novel treatment for severe emphysema, today announced significant steps to accelerate its path toward commercialization, appointing a high-profile industry leader to its board and securing a strategic investment from the venture arm of a major U.S. health system.

The company has appointed David Amerson, a medical device veteran with a formidable track record of scaling technologies to market-leading positions, to its Board of Directors. Simultaneously, Apreo Health received a strategic investment from OSF Ventures, the corporate investment arm of OSF HealthCare. These moves signal growing confidence in the company's BREATHE Airway Scaffold, a pioneering implant for the millions of patients suffering from the debilitating effects of severe emphysema, as the company prepares to unveil new clinical data at a major medical conference.

"We are at a pivotal moment as we scale our clinical evidence and prepare for the next phase of commercial readiness," said Karun Naga, CEO of Apreo Health, in a statement. "Dave Amerson's track record of scaling transformative medical technologies is unparalleled, and the addition of OSF Ventures further validates the potential of the BREATHE Airway Scaffold to improve outcomes and reduce the cost of care for a massive, underserved patient population."

A Boost from Proven Leadership and Strategic Capital

The appointment of Dave Amerson is a significant coup for the Menlo Park-based company. Amerson is widely recognized for his role as President and CEO of NeoTract, where he guided the UroLift® System from an emerging technology for benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) into a global standard of care. His leadership culminated in the company's acquisition by Teleflex in 2017 for up to $1.1 billion. Amerson's Midas touch appears to extend across the medtech landscape, having served on the boards of Relievant Medsystems, acquired by Boston Scientific for over $850 million in 2023, and Palette Life Sciences, acquired by Teleflex for $600 million the same year. His involvement brings not just expertise, but a powerful endorsement of Apreo’s commercial potential.

"Apreo Health is solving a fundamental challenge in interventional pulmonology by providing a solution that doesn't rely on collateral ventilation status or disease pattern," stated Mr. Amerson. "I am eager to work with the team to bring this meaningful therapy to the millions of patients suffering from the debilitating effects of emphysema."

Complementing this leadership enhancement is the strategic investment from OSF Ventures. As the venture arm of an integrated health system, OSF's investment is more than just financial fuel; it represents a clinical and economic validation from the front lines of healthcare delivery. OSF Ventures focuses on technologies that can fundamentally alter chronic disease management and integrate seamlessly into patient care pathways.

"We look for technologies that can fundamentally shift the trajectory of chronic disease management," said Liridon Rrushaj, Director of Venture Investing at OSF Ventures. "Apreo's minimally invasive approach aligns with our goal of supporting innovations that simplify the patient pathway and deliver measurable clinical improvements."

Redefining Treatment in a Vast, Unmet Market

The focus of this momentum is the Apreo BREATHE Airway Scaffold, an investigational device that received FDA Breakthrough Device Designation in 2024. It aims to address a critical unmet need in the emphysema market, which is projected to exceed $7 billion by the early 2030s. Severe emphysema, a form of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), causes the lungs to lose elasticity, trapping air and leading to severe shortness of breath.

Current interventional options, such as endobronchial valves made by companies like Pulmonx and Olympus, have limitations. Their effectiveness often depends on the absence of "collateral ventilation"—airflow between lobes of the lung—which can exclude a large portion of the patient population. Surgical options, like lung volume reduction surgery, are highly invasive and carry significant risks.

Apreo’s BREATHE scaffold is designed to bypass these limitations. Delivered via a minimally invasive bronchoscopic procedure, the small, self-expanding nitinol scaffolds are implanted to prop open native airways. This tissue-sparing approach is intended to create pathways for trapped air to escape, reducing lung hyperinflation without destroying or blocking lung tissue. Because it does not depend on collateral ventilation status or the specific pattern of the disease, it could potentially treat a much broader patient population.

Early feasibility studies, BREATHE 1 and 2, have shown promising results. A pooled analysis published in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine in 2025 demonstrated a high technical success rate and, notably, no instances of post-procedural pneumothorax (collapsed lung) over six months—a known complication with other lung volume reduction techniques.

Eyes on Orlando and the Path Forward

With new leadership and capital in place, all eyes now turn to the upcoming American Thoracic Society (ATS) 2026 International Conference in Orlando. Apreo Health is scheduled to present new data from its ongoing clinical programs during a scientific session on May 20th. This presentation is expected to build on the foundational data from its earlier trials and may offer a first look at progress from its pivotal BREATHE-3 clinical trial, which is currently enrolling up to 250 participants across the U.S. and Europe.

The medical and investment communities will be watching closely to see if the new data reinforces the scaffold's safety and efficacy profile. A strong showing at ATS would further solidify the company's position as a leader in the next generation of interventional pulmonology and move the BREATHE Airway Scaffold one step closer to becoming a vital new option for patients gasping for a better solution.