Baltimore – September 07, 2026 -- Nanochon, Inc. has completed the first procedure in its First-in-Human clinical study for ChondrograftTM, a 3D-printed implant targeting articular cartilage defects of the knee, with the surgery performed at The Panama Clinic in Panama City.
Drs. Osorio and Tufiño perform first Chondrograft implant procedure in Panama
Dr. Juan Osorio, the study's Principal Investigator, and Dr. Emilio Tufiño, both specialists in regenerative sports medicine, carried out the bone-sparing, minimally invasive procedure. Dr. Tufiño noted the dedicated instrumentation set made the operation simple and efficient.
Study targets patients aged 22 to 60 with unresolved cartilage lesions
The prospective trial will enroll patients between 22 and 60 years old who have failed conservative treatment and present with one or two femoral condyle and/or trochlear cartilage lesions. The design is intended to evaluate the safety and performance of ChondrograftTM ahead of a larger pivotal study.
Nanochon plans Level 1 multi-center pivotal trial after FIH completion
Following the First-in-Human study, Nanochon intends to launch a Level 1 multi-center, randomized, controlled pivotal clinical trial to support eventual market entry. CEO Ben Holmes said the rapid identification, enrollment, and treatment of the first patient reflects the scale of unmet clinical need in cartilage repair.
Device targets "pre-replacement" patients to delay knee replacement surgery
ChondrograftTM is engineered to deliver immediate mechanical support through a minimally invasive, "burn-no-bridges" approach for patients with cartilage damage who require more than temporary relief but are not yet candidates for joint replacement. Co-Founder and CTO Nathan Castro said the goal is to potentially delay or eliminate revision surgery and knee replacement in younger patients.
Nanochon has received Breakthrough Device Designation from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for the technology.