A Medical Device Daily

Synthetic Blood International (Costa Mesa, California) reported that Robert Larsen, one of its founders and interim CEO, died Sunday night. He was 79.

Chris Stern, chairman of Synthetic Blood, said Larsen "was such a gentleman and a person I could only learn from. All who knew and worked with Bob both liked and respected him as a businessman, leader and as a person. I can't help but wonder whether Oxycyte, which he believed in so strongly, could have helped save his life."

Oxycyte is the company's perfluorocarbon (PFC) oxygen carrier/blood substitute. The company said it plans to begin a Phase IIb trial of the product in 200 traumatic brain injury patients in the second quarter. Stern said that Larsen would want the company to "go forward even more aggressively. Our plans for the Phase II–b trials are on schedule ... ."

Stern will take Larsen's roles with the company and will have the titles president/CEO and chairman. The company said it will report on expanding its board later in the week.

Besides being a company founder, Larsen served as a director and its CFO from 1990 until 2002. He returned to the company's management as interim CEO and director in late 2007. He formerly was president/CEO of Bay Hospital Medical Center (Chula Vista, California) and a former trustee of the California Hospital Association.

He is survived by his wife, five children and six grandchildren.