Glendon (Glen) French has more than 25 years experience in general management, and marketing and sales management, with medical device and biotechnology companies. He recently led the sale of Asthmatx, Inc. to Boston Scientific Corporation (Oct 2010) in deal with a potential value of approximately $450M. Since 1997, he has co-founded four medical device companies, raised more than $150M, and sold two of these companies to major corporations.
Prior to Broncus (Asthmatx was a spin-out from Broncus), Mr. French served as Vice President, Marketing and Business Development for the surgical division of C.R. Bard, Inc. While there he helped lead the turnaround of four declining business units, earning the organization recognition as the top performing Bard division for four consecutive years. Prior to Bard, he worked as Manager, Worldwide Marketing for Centocor, Inc. (a biotechnology company since acquired by J&J), and held positions in sales and sales management with the Critical Care and V. Mueller divisions of American Hospital Supply Corporation.
Mr. French is a graduate of Dartmouth College (B.A. in History) and The Wharton School of Business Administration at the University of Pennsylvania (M.B.A. in Management and Marketing).
Asthmatx markets the Alair(R) Bronchial Thermoplasty System, which received U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval in April 2010. Bronchial thermoplasty is a less-invasive procedure routinely performed under conscious sedation with patients typically returning home the same day. The Alair System delivers thermal energy to the airway wall in a precisely controlled manner to reduce excessive airway smooth muscle. The procedure is designed to decrease the ability of the airways to constrict, thereby reducing the frequency and severity of asthma attacks.
Bronchial Thermoplasty System was awarded the 2010 Popular Science "Best of What's New" Award in the Health category.
Effective October 27, 2010 Asthmatx became a wholly-owned subsidiary of Boston Scientific Corp.
