Proscia announced on 9/26/18 that it 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, and Thomas Jefferson University Hospitals.
