Endoron and the EIC Accelerator: Stapling Aortic Grafts in Place

Endoron Medical, based in Kfar Saba, Israel, and led by co-founder and CEO Ronit Harpaz, develops Aortoseal, a catheter-delivered implant that staples the stent graft used in endovascular aortic aneurysm repair to the aortic wall. Its EIC project said open surgery is durable but risky, while the minimally invasive alternative, EVAR, needs lifelong monitoring and repeat procedures; Aortoseal was meant to combine "the stability of an open, sutured repair" with EVAR's lower risk, according to CORDIS.

The European Innovation Council granted €2,499,999 towards a €6.05 million project from February 2023 to July 2025. The final report says Aortoseal was developed, patents were granted in the US, Japan, Australia and elsewhere, the early feasibility study was completed and research sites were being set up in Europe and the US. In July 2024 Sofinnova Partners led a $10 million Series A with "significant matching contributions" from the EIC Fund. Its US study, planned for 25 patients, is recruiting with completion estimated for 2029, according to ClinicalTrials.gov.

Where Endoron Stands Now

An April 2026 case report in the Journal of Vascular Surgery Cases and Innovative Techniques, available on PubMed Central, describes Aortoseal used with a Medtronic Endurant graft in a 63-year-old man with a difficult aortic neck, "as part of an international feasibility trial", with no endoleak at completion and full aneurysm exclusion at one month. Endoron's website now presents a portfolio of anchoring devices, adding Aortodock, a docking platform for transcatheter aortic valves in patients with aortic regurgitation. The ClinicalTrials.gov entry lists one US site, in Norfolk, Virginia, and was last updated in March 2025.

The Technology: Suturing From Inside the Aorta

Aortoseal delivers several staples through the graft into the aortic wall at once, which the case report says mimics the hand-sewn joint of open surgery. The aim is to stop grafts migrating and leaking at the top, which forces some EVAR patients back into hospital. The report says open surgery is recommended for 22% of patients and EVAR for 78%.

What the EIC Project Promised, and What CORDIS Shows

The project promised to bring Aortoseal through early clinical validation. The report says the early feasibility study was completed and first-in-human cases were done. No patient numbers or outcome data from that study are in the report, and the registered US study will run for years. CORDIS still lists the project as signed.

1. Device developmentDeliveredAortoseal built.
2. First-in-human useDeliveredCase report, 2026.
3. Follow-on investmentDelivered$10M Series A.
4. Clinical outcome dataPendingStudy to 2029.

The Money

The Series A was led by Sofinnova Partners through its MD Start strategy, which backs early medtech companies with capital and operational support. How much the EIC Fund put in was not disclosed. Endoron has not published its accounts.

What Cannot Be Checked

Why Europe Should Care

The report puts the potential EU healthcare savings over ten years at about €9 billion, a company estimate. The EIC backed this Israeli company with both grant and equity, and the benefit to European patients depends on trials that are still early.

The Verdict

Endoron Medical and the EIC have not been asked for comment for this article. It is based entirely on public records and published statements, linked throughout.