lumbar-fusion
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Cerapedics Inc.
Cerapedics is a commercial-stage ortho-biologics company that engineered a synthetic 15-amino-acid peptide, P-15, to coax the body into building bone faster. Its FDA-approved i-FACTOR is used in cervical spine fusions, and its 2025 PearlMatrix approval made it the first and only proven bone growth accelerator cleared for lumbar fusion.
Valeska Schroeder
Valeska Schroeder, Ph.D., is CEO and Chairman of the Board at Cerapedics Inc., the Colorado-based orthobiologics company behind i-FACTOR and PearlMatrix - two of only three FDA PMA-approved bone grafts on the U.S. spine market. A materials scientist by training (BS, MS, PhD from UC Berkeley), she spent the first part of her career in medtech product development before transitioning to venture investing at KCK MedTech, where she led deals and sat on boards of companies including Sight Sciences, Aerin Medical, Intuity Medical, and Lungpacer. She joined Cerapedics' board in 2018, deepened her involvement in 2021, and took the helm as CEO in November 2022, steering the company through PearlMatrix's landmark FDA approval in June 2025 - making Cerapedics the only company with two PMA-approved spinal biologics.