PHILADELPHIA–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Proscia, the pioneer in the development and advancement of digital pathology, has closed an $8.3 million round of Series A financing from a group of East and West Coast venture capital firms. The funding was led by Boston-based Flybridge Capital Partners and included Emerald Development Managers, Fusion Fund, Razor’s Edge Ventures, and RobinHood Ventures.
Proceeds from the financing will be used to expand the deployment of the company’s digital pathology software and accelerate the use of artificial intelligence (AI) applications to drive accuracy and efficiency in cancer diagnosis. The capital raised will fuel the development and commercialization of new, clinical AI-enabled workflows targeting high-volume, high-impact cancers, the first of which will be available later this year. Proscia will also use the funds to ramp up sales and marketing of its existing cloud-based digital pathology platform, which will serve as the foundation for Proscia’s AI-based applications. Combined, these technologies will redefine the field of pathology and be the impetus that moves human healthcare forward.
“Digital pathology and artificial intelligence are unlocking new possibilities for pathologists in the fight against cancer,” said David West, CEO at Proscia. “Pathology has been historically underserved by technology, and we believe that powerful software tools will push the boundaries of how modern pathology is practiced. That’s why this funding is so important. It will allow us to expand the adoption of digital pathology, while creating intelligent systems that will unlock data from tissue to greatly enhance pathologists’ productivity, increase access to care, and improve the way cancer is researched, diagnosed, and ultimately treated.”
Pathology is at the center of cancer diagnosis and guides a patient’s entire cancer journey, yet pathologists, and their ability to diagnose cancer, are largely dependent on the microscope that has been in place for 150 years. The limitations of the microscope and the subjectivity involved in assessing tumors contribute to diagnostic error, resulting in negative patient outcomes and economic burden to the healthcare system. Proscia represents a paradigm shift, using the image analysis capabilities of machines to augment human evaluations for better, more reliable diagnosis. Facing intense economic pressure, a shrinking workforce, and a surge in the global demand for pathology, laboratory medicine is primed for a shift to digital and AI-driven methods.
Proscia’s digital pathology platform is currently used by thousands of pathologists, scientists, histotechnicians, and lab managers at more than 300 clinical and research facilities worldwide, including, Driver, Henry Ford Health System, Hospital Puerto Montt, Johns Hopkins Department of Pathology. The cloud-based, modular platform integrates easily with labs’ unique environments and complex technology ecosystems, enabling them to:
- Adopt digital pathology on their own terms by rolling out new features and capabilities seamlessly as they embark on the path to AI-enhanced pathology
- Create new image-based workflows that streamline operations, reduce turnaround times, and cut costs
- Open up new imaging and analytics revenue streams to differentiate themselves from their peers and thrive in the current climate of rapid laboratory and hospital consolidation
- Protect and future-proof current investments in hardware and other infrastructure
- Improve diagnostic efficiency and quality to ultimately improve patient outcomes
This robust platform will serve as the launchpad for a series of AI-enabled, disease-specific modules, the first of which, DermAI™, will be released in December 2018.
Chip Hazard, General Partner at Flybridge, commented on Proscia’s unprecedented momentum in the digital pathology space. “David and his team are exactly the kind of entrepreneurs Flybridge believes can develop innovative solutions for customers, unlock stunning growth, and become category leaders. In addition to creating platform-agnostic software that is modernizing commercial labs, academic medical centers, and hospitals, Proscia is pioneering world’s-first advancements in deep learning that have the potential to change cancer research.”
As part of the funding, Chip Hazard and Tom Loftus, Chief Technologist at Razor’s Edge Ventures, have joined Proscia’s Board of Directors.
For more information or a demo of Proscia’s digital pathology platform, to discuss partnership opportunities, or to join our team, contact Proscia at www.proscia.com/contact.
About Proscia
Proscia was founded in 2014 by a team out of Johns Hopkins and the University of Pittsburgh to improve clinical outcomes and accelerate the discovery of breakthrough advancements in the fight against cancer. Using modern computing technologies that unlock hidden data not visible to the human eye and turning that data into valuable insights in the fight against cancer, the company is dedicated to improving the efficiency, speed and quality of pathology diagnostics and research. www.proscia.com
About Flybridge
Flybridge is a seed and early-stage venture capital firm with offices in Boston and New York City whose mission is to partner with talented entrepreneurs to build exceptional and valuable technology companies. With $625 million under management across four funds, the firm has invested in more than 120 companies across the machine learning, artificial intelligence, Blockchain, cybersecurity, infrastructure and future of work markets and is led by a team with more than a century of combined experience as investors and entrepreneurs. www.flybridge.com
Contacts
Proscia
Lindsay Cavanaugh, 610-228-2114
lindsayc@gregoryfca.com
