Waltham – October 19, 2026 -- Lumicell, Inc. has promoted Chief Commercial Officer Marnie Curbow to Chief Executive Officer, effective immediately, less than a year after she joined the fluorescence-guided cancer surgery company.
Curbow rose from VP of Sales to CEO within roughly 12 months
Curbow joined Lumicell in October 2025 as Vice President of Sales. She was then promoted to Chief Commercial Officer, with responsibility for sales, marketing, reimbursement and clinical applications. Lumicell credits her with building its commercial organization and strengthening its go-to-market strategy.
Before Lumicell, she served as GM & VP Sales Diagnostics for the Americas at Rhinomed, where she launched a novel diagnostic and secured a SPARK accelerator award from BARDA. She brings nearly two decades of experience across breast oncology, surgery, diagnostics and therapeutics.
Board Chairman Dr. Andrey Zarur said Curbow has shown capabilities beyond a single function and has earned the trust of employees, clinical partners and leadership. Curbow said the company has built a strong foundation and that "now it is time to accelerate."
Lumicell targets wider pFGS adoption, a larger investor base and more tumor indications
Under Curbow, Lumicell will focus on four priorities:
- advancing adoption of pegulicianine fluorescence-guided surgery (pFGS);
- strengthening commercial and clinical partnerships;
- expanding the current investor base;
- pursuing additional solid tumor indications.
Lumicell is privately held.
FDA-approved system is in use at U.S. hospitals since April 2024
The system helps surgeons identify residual cancer during lumpectomy. It received FDA approval in April 2024 and is implemented in hospitals across the United States. It consists of the LUMISIGHT (pegulicianine) optical imaging agent and the Lumicell DVS fluorescence imaging device. Both are indicated for adults with breast cancer as an adjunct for detecting cancerous tissue in the resection cavity after the primary specimen is removed.
The prescribing information carries a Boxed Warning. Anaphylaxis occurred in 4 of 726 patients (0.6%) in clinical studies. The label states that the absence of a signal does not rule out cancer, and that the system does not replace standard-of-care procedures and pathology.