NEW YORK (GenomeWeb News) – Genomics-based prostate cancer test developer GenomeDx Biosciences today said that it closed a Series B financing round.
The San Diego-based company declined to disclose the amount raised. Merck Global Health Innovation Fund led the round and was joined by Baird Capital Partners, Aeris Capital, and CD Ventures. The funding will go toward expanding the commercialization of GenomeDx's Decipher prostate cancer test, which predicts the risk of developing the disease independent of a PSA test and other commonly used assessment tools.
"Together with our collaborators in the prostate cancer community we have developed a robust package of clinical validation and clinical utility data supporting the use of Decipher in clinical practice," GenomeDx CEO Doug Dolginow said in a statement. The new financing, he added, "is instrumental to achieving our goal of using genomic information to transform the treatment and management of men diagnosed with prostate cancer."
The Decipher test analyzes whole genomes to profile RNA expression signatures. It measures the aggressiveness of prostate cancer in patients who have had a prostatectomy and classifies a patient's risk of disease progression, metastasis, and prostate-related death after a prostatectomy.
In the spring, GenomeDx announced an expanded research agreement with the Mayo Clinic to include the exclusive licensing of certain intellectual property from the clinic. The two originally collaborated on the development of Decipher.