OncoRes Medical announced that it raised $12.5 million for its handheld imaging device for identifying cancer cells.
Perth, Western Australia-based OncoRes designed its imaging system to facilitate real-time tumor assessment, helping surgeons more accurately identify and remove cancerous tissue, including for breast cancer. The company won FDA breakthrough device designation in October 2020 for the device aimed at enabling surgeons to remove all cancer on the first try, thus avoiding a second procedure.
When the handheld probe is applied to a region of interest, it provides micro-scale maps of the stiffness of the tissue — a key differentiator from healthy tissue — giving the surgeon the opportunity to remove the cancerous tissue.
According to a news release, the company raised $9.5 million in a Series A2 funding co-led by Brandon Capital and Australian Unity’s Future of Healthcare Fund. The company added $3 million to that total with a Cooperative Research Centres Projects (CRC-P) Round 12 grant.
The company said the funds will be used to support its upcoming clinical trials.
“We are delighted to announce that we have secured $12.5m in funding which will aid with the development of our Quantitative Micro-Elastography (QME) imaging system which is about to commence its next clinical trials. Our system has the potential to improve outcomes in breast-conserving surgery and reduce repeat operations for women with breast cancer,” OncoRes Medical CEO Dr. Katharine Giles said in the release. “At OncoRes Medical we believe that all women deserve the opportunity to move beyond their initial breast cancer surgery knowing that all of the cancer has been removed, the first time.
“This continued support takes us closer to providing a game-changing solution for breast cancer surgeons, so we can bring these benefits to the people at the center of our mission, patients. This financing round remains open for interested parties and we look forward to progressing into our next clinical study.”
