A board-certified general and cardiothoracic surgeon, inventor, and 15-year practitioner before transiting into industry leadership, Francis Duhay serves as Avania’s first Chief Medical Officer, leading the expansion of the company’s internal therapeutic expertise across clinical development and advisory services. He began his career as an Assistant Professor of Cardiothoracic Surgery at Duke University and later served as Chief of Cardiothoracic Surgery at Kaiser Permanente before entering the MedTech industry. Dr. Duhay has held senior leadership roles at Edwards Lifesciences, where he ultimately served as Chief Medical Officer, and at Olympus Corporation, while also founding and leading multiple venture-backed MedTech companies. Throughout his career, Dr. Duhay has led 88 clinical studies, authored 45 peer-reviewed publications, and earned more than 30 U.S. and international patents.
