Getting to the Heart of the Matter

Originally Published MX May/June 2002

COVER STORY

Getting to the Heart of the Matter

After two decades, Abiomed president and CEO David M. Lederman looks forward to accomplishing a national mission.

Interview by Steve Halasey

Considering the competitive environment in which medical technology companies do business, it's by no means a certainty that any given company will survive long enough to reach the market with its products. Add in the challenges of advanced research, complex technologies, and high-level regulatory requirements, and you've got a recipe for almost certain company disaster.

That's what makes the achievement of Abiomed (Danvers, MA) so impressive. With all of those factors aligned against it, the company has managed to thrive for more than two decades while steadily making progress on the development of its fully implantable artificial replacement heart, called the AbioCor.

Founded in 1981, Abiomed has been led from the beginning by David M. Lederman, PhD, company founder, president, and CEO. An aerospace engineer by training, Lederman came to the medical field