Rosacea is a condition with no known cause and no cure.  

“These patients really suffer from this disease, and hopefully help is on the way,” said Dr. Edward Wladis, co-founder of Praxis Biotechnology.

An estimated 16 million Americans live with rosacea, a disorder causing facial redness, irritation and swelling.  

“It can lead, in many cases, to embarrassment, anxiety, and to depression. So it is not just a physical ailment, but a psychological problem,” Dr. Alejandro Adam, co-founder of Praxis Biotechnology.

Frustrated with a lack of treatment options, Drs. Wladis and Adam created their own company to research solutions. It’s called Praxis Biotechnology, and it is based at Albany Medical College.

“Our mission is to improve medical practice through scientific research,” said Dr. Adam.

They’ve developed a topical medication targeting a specific protein that is found the skin of people with rosacea.

“We’re providing a really specific knockout punch for rosacea that as opposed to targeting the immune system in general,” said Wladis.

Praxis Biotechnology was recently awarded $50,000 after winning FuzeHub’s commercialization competition. The non-profit, helping New York manufacturing companies grow their business, believes this medication could impact millions.

“They are providing a medical solution which certainly has widespread appeal throughout the medical community,” said Julianne Clouthier of FuzeHub.

The money will help Praxis pay for patient testing in the coming months. The founders are confident their research may represent a significant step towards finding a cure.

“I really hope that my waiting room gets a lot emptier. I hope we don’t have any patients with this disease in the near future. I hope we can just knock it out of the park and people feel a lot better,” said Wladis.