Medtech Industry Vet Takes the Helm at MRI Interventions

MRI Interventions Inc. has brought a medical device veteran on board as its CEO. Frank Grillo will join the company first as on Oct. 6 and then will become CEO on the first day of 2015.

Kimble Jenkins, who has led MRI Interventions since 2003, will assume the position of Executive Chairman on Jan. 1 and will continue to be actively involved with the Irvine, Calif.-based company.

Frank Grillo joins MRI Interventions from Intuitive Surgical Inc., where he has served as a senior executive responsible for marketing and business development functions for the $17 billion surgical systems company. Most recently, he was vice president of marketing and new business development.

Prior to his time at Intuitive Surgical, Grillo was vice president of marketing and business development for spine company Kyphon Inc. (now part of Medtronic Inc.). Grillo was recruited to Kyphon to drive strategic initiatives to expand the company’s product and procedural portfolios. Grillo was a key member of the team involved in the sale of Kyphon to Medtronic for $4.2 billion in 2007.

Prior to joining Kyphon, Grillo served for 10 years in multiple roles with Boston Scientific Corporation, including vice president of marketing for the company’s women’s health ivision.

“I am delighted for Frank to be coming on as CEO of MRI Interventions,” said Jenkins. “Our objective with ClearPoint is to revolutionize minimally invasive neurosurgery. We have a proven product and a strong base of initial users. Our next phase of growth is focused on driving widespread commercialization, and Frank is the right person to lead the company through this stage and beyond. Frank’s capabilities and skills in this area are proven. His experiences driving adoption of new medical technologies at Intuitive Surgical, Kyphon and Boston Scientific make Frank an ideal fit for MRI Interventions. I look forward to working with him and supporting his leadership of the company.”

MRI Interventions’ ClearPoint system uses a hospital’s existing diagnostic or intra-operative MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) scanner to enable minimally invasive procedures in the brain. In partnership with Siemens Healthcare, MRI Interventions is developing the ClearTrace system for MRI-guided catheter ablations to treat cardiac arrhythmias, including atrial fibrillation.

“The field of neurosurgery is one of the last major untapped markets in the medical field. Driven by the aging patient population, a significant unmet clinical need, and a surgical approach that is antiquated compared to surgical techniques in other fields of medicine, neurosurgery is the next big opportunity,” said Grillo. “The ClearPoint platform is an innovative product, uniquely suited to transform this field. I believe that patients in need of a variety of neurosurgical procedures can benefit from the product platform developed by MRI Interventions. I am excited to apply what I have learned regarding the adoption of new medical technologies to transform the neurosurgery market with ClearPoint.”