Management Team

Lishan Aklog, M.D. has served as PAVmed’s Chairman and Chief Executive Officer since he co-founded the company in 2014, based on a portfolio of his and his co-founders’ inventions. He also serves as Executive Chairman of PAVmed’s major subsidiaries—medical diagnostics company, Lucid Diagnostics Inc., and digital health company, Veris Health Inc. Dr. Aklog has been active in the life sciences for several decades, including as an executive, entrepreneur, public company director, technological innovator, corporate advisor, and, previously, as an innovator in cardiac surgery at leading academic medical centers, including Harvard Medical School and Mount Sinai School of Medicine. He is a medical technology industry leader who serves on the Board of Directors of the Advanced Medical Technology Association (AdvaMed), the world’s leading medical technology trade association, and was recognized as one the Top Healthcare Technology CEOs of 2021 by Healthcare Technology Report.

Dr. Aklog began his career as a medical technology entrepreneur and executive in 2007, as co-founding Partner of both Pavilion Holdings Group (PHG), a medical device holding company, and Pavilion Medical Innovations (PMI), its venture-backed medical device incubator. He co-founded Vortex Medical Inc., a PHG portfolio company which developed and commercialized the revolutionary AngioVac^® system, and served as its Chairman and Chief Technology Officer from its inception in 2008 until its acquisition by AngioDynamics Inc. (Nasdaq: ANGO) in October 2012. Dr. Aklog is an inventor on 35 issued patents and dozens of patent applications, including the patents of the AngioVac system and the majority of the PAVmed’s products.  His patents have been honored by the Boston Museum of Science and the Boston Patent Lawyers Association

Dr. Aklog has served in various other capacities across the life sciences industry including on the Board of Directors and the Audit Committee of Contrafect Inc. (Nasdaq: CFRX), a biopharmaceutical company, since June 2020 and on the Board of Directors and as Chair of the Audit Committee of Viveon Health Acquisition Corp. (NYSE: VHAQ), a healthcare special purpose acquisition corporation (SPAC) from September 2020 to April 2021. Over his career, Dr. Aklog has served as a consultant to numerous medical technology companies including Biomet Inc., now Zimmer Biomet (NYSE: ZBH), AngioDynamics, Edward Lifesciences Corp. (NYSE: EW), On-X Life Technologies Inc., now CryoLife Inc. (NYSE: CRY), and Atricure Inc. (Nasdaq: ATRC). He also previously served on the Scientific Advisory Boards of numerous leading medical device companies, including Medtronic Inc. (NYSE: MDT), St. Jude Medical Inc., now Abbott Laboratories (NYSE: ABT), Guidant Cardiac Surgery, now, Getinge AB, and Cardiovations, then, a division of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ), as well as numerous early-stage medical technology companies.

Prior to transitioning to a full-time career as an entrepreneur and life sciences executive in 2012, Dr. Aklog had a distinguished academic and clinical career as a technological innovator in cardiac surgery.  serving as Assistant Professor of Surgery at Harvard Medical School, Director of the Cardiac Surgery Research Laboratory and an attending cardiac surgeon at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston from 1999 to 2002; Assistant Professor of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Associate Chief of Cardiac Surgery, Director of Minimally Invasive Cardiac Surgery, Surgical Director of the Cardiothoracic Intensive Care Unit, and Associate Director of the Thoracic Surgery Residency Program at Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York, from 2006 to 2012; and Associate Professor of Surgery, Chief of Cardiovascular Surgery and Chair of The Cardiovascular Center at St. Joseph’s Hospital and Medical Center’s Heart and Lung Institute in Phoenix, Arizona from 2006 to 2012.

Dr. Aklog received his clinical training in general and cardiothoracic surgery at Harvard Medical School’s Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Boston Children’s Hospital, during which he spent two years as the Medtronic Research Fellow at the medical school’s Cardiac Surgery Research Laboratory. He was awarded the American Association of Thoracic Surgery Traveling Fellowship pursuant to which he received advanced training in heart valve surgery under renowned cardiac surgeons Sir Magdi Yacoub at Harefield Hospital in London and Professor Alain Carpentier at L’Hopital Broussais in Paris.  Dr. Aklog is a co-author on 38 peer-reviewed articles and 10 book chapters and has served on the Editorial Board of the Journal of Cardiothoracic Surgery since 2006. He is a member of numerous professional societies and was elected to the American Association of Thoracic Surgery in 2011. He served on the Board of Directors of the International Society for Minimally Invasive Cardiothoracic Surgery from 2006 to 2009 and as President of the 21st Century Cardiothoracic Surgery Society in 2011. During his clinical career he was a perennial honoree as one of America’s Top Doctors in the Castle Connolly Guide from 2002 to 2013.

Dr. Aklog received his A.B. degree, magna cum laude, in Physics from Harvard University, where he was elected to Phi Beta Kappa and his M.D. degree, cum laude with a dissertation in the field of molecular genetics, from Harvard Medical School. He has been active in philanthropic organizations, including currently serving on the International Board of Directors of Human Rights Watch.

Dennis M. McGrath has served as the Company’s Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer since March 2017.

Previously, from 2000 to 2017 Mr. McGrath served in several senior level positions of PhotoMedex, Inc. (Nasdaq: PHMD), a global manufacturer and distributor of medical device equipment and services, including from 2011 to 2017 as director, President, and Chief Financial Officer. Prior to PhotoMedex’s reverse merger with Radiancy, Inc in December 2011, he also served as Chief Executive Officer from 2009 to 2011 and served as Vice President of Finance and Chief Financial Officer from 2000 to 2009.

He received honors as a P.A.C.T. (Philadelphia Alliance for Capital and Technology) finalist for the 2011 Investment Deal of the Year, award winner for the SmartCEO Magazine 2012 CEO of the Year for Turnaround Company, and finalist for the Ernst & Young 2013 Entrepreneur of the Year. He has extensive experience in mergers and acquisitions, both domestically and internationally, and particularly involving public company acquisitions, including Surgical Laser Technologies, Inc, (formerly, Nasdaq: SLTI), ProCyte Corporation (formerly, Nasdaq: PRCY), LCA Vision, Inc. (formerly, Nasdaq: LCAV) and Think New Ideas, Inc. (formerly, Nasdaq: THNK). Prior to PhotoMedex, he served in several senior level positions of AnswerThink Consulting Group, Inc. (then, Nasdaq: ANSR, now, The Hackett Group, Nasdaq: HCKT), a business consulting and technology integration company, including from 1999 to 2000 as Chief Operating Officer of the Internet Practice, the largest division of AnswerThink Consulting Group, Inc., while concurrently during the merger of the companies, serving as the acting Chief Financial Officer of Think New Ideas, Inc. (then, Nasdaq: THNK, now, Nasdaq: HCKT), an interactive marketing services and business solutions company. Mr. McGrath also served from 1996 until 1999 as Chief Financial Officer, Executive Vice President and director of TriSpan, Inc., an internet commerce solutions and technology consulting company, which was acquired by AnswerThink Consulting Group, Inc. in 1999.

During his tenure at Arthur Andersen & Co., where he began his career, he became a Certified Public Accountant in 1981 and he holds a B.S., maxima cum laude, in accounting from LaSalle University. In addition to continuing as a director of PhotoMedex, he serves as the audit chair and a director of several medical device companies, including DarioHealth Corp. (Nasdaq: DRIO), Noninvasive Medical Technologies, Inc. and Cagent Vascular, LLC, and as an advisor to the board of an orphan drug company, Palvella Therapeutics, LLC. Formerly from 2007 to 2009, Mr. McGrath served as a director of Embrella Cardiovascular, Inc. (sold to Edwards Lifesciences Corporation, NYSE: EW). He also serves on the Board of Trustees for Manor College and the Board of Visitors for Taylor University.

Dr. deGuzman has served as PAVmed’s Chief Medical Officer since October 2014 and served as a Director from October 2014 to January 2015. Dr. deGuzman has previously served as a co-founding Partner of Pavilion Holdings Group (“PHG”), a medical device holding company, and Pavilion Medical Innovations (“PMI”), a venture-backed medical device incubator, since their respective inceptions in 2007 and 2009.

Dr. deGuzman has been President and Chief Executive Officer of Kaleidoscope Medical since its founding in February 2013 and has also served as a Senior Advisor to PMI portfolio companies Saphena Medical since February 2013 and Cruzar Medsystems since July 2013. Dr. deGuzman served as Chief Medical Officer of Vortex Medical from inception until its sale to AngioDynamics, for whom he continues to serve as a consultant. Dr. deGuzman has also been a consultant to Biomet and Atricure since 2007, and on the Revascularization Scientific Advisory Board of Maquet Cardiovascular (formerly Boston Scientific and Guidant Cardiac Surgery) since 2006.

During his surgical career, Dr. deGuzman also served as a consultant to various medical device companies, including Edward Lifesciences. Prior to moving into the medical device industry full-time in 2012, Dr. deGuzman was Assistant Professor of Surgery, Associate Chief of Cardiovascular Surgery, and Surgical Director of the Atrial Fibrillation Clinic at St. Joseph’s Hospital and Medical Center’s Heart and Lung Institute from 2006 to 2012. From 2002 to 2006, Dr. deGuzman was Assistant Professor of Surgery at Tufts University School of Medicine and an attending cardiac surgeon at the Lahey Clinic Medical Center in Massachusetts. From 2001 to 2002, Dr. deGuzman was a Clinical Associate of Cardiac Surgery at the Cleveland Clinic.

Dr. deGuzman received his general surgical training at the University of Connecticut/Hartford Hospital, was a Research Fellow at Harvard Medical School’s Cardiac Surgery Research Laboratory, and received his cardiothoracic surgical training at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Boston Children’s Hospital. Dr. deGuzman was recognized as a Top Doctor in Cardiovascular Surgery by Boston Magazine. Dr. deGuzman received his B.S. in Biology from Boston College and his M.D. from Georgetown University School of Medicine.

Mr. O’Neil has served as PAVmed’s Chief Commercial Officer and Executive Vice President, Business Development since 2018. Prior to PAVmed, Mr. O’Neil brought to PAVmed more than fifteen years of sales and marketing leadership, and product and business development expertise in both startup and established companies, including a particularly strong track record in growing sales and increasing market share for innovative medical devices. From 2011 to 2018 Mr. O’Neil held various sales and marketing leadership positions with AngioDynamics (Nasdaq: ANGO), a leading provider of innovative medical devices used by interventional radiologists, interventional cardiologists, surgeons, and other physicians for the minimally invasive diagnosis and treatment of cancer and peripheral vascular disease. Prior to AngioDynamics, he served in various sales, marketing and engineering roles at Aycan Medical Systems, a privately held medical imaging company, Harris Interactive and Quality Solutions Group.

Mr. O’Neil received a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from Alfred University and an M.B.A. from the Rochester Institute of Technology.