MIT startup Leuko has announced a first closing of $5 million for their Series A round.
The funding will accelerate Leuko’s clinical trials to obtain regulatory approval for PointCheck – the first solution that enables at-home non-invasive white blood cell (WBC) monitoring.
Leuko is collaborating with leading cancer centres, including Boston Medical Center and MD Anderson in the USA and Dexeus and Hospital 12 de Octubre in Madrid.
The company will continue to pursue its go-to-market and partnership activities with healthcare providers, medical device distributors and pharmaceutical companies.
Leuko co-founder and CEO, Dr Carlos Castro-Gonzalez, said:
“Low WBC levels is one of the most common as well as most devastating and costliest side effects of cancer chemotherapy.
“Clinical data indicates that as many as one out of every six chemotherapy patients suffer life-threatening infections and hospital readmissions directly linked to low WBCs.
“At Leuko, we are working on a solution to help patients and providers prevent these hospital readmissions and improve clinical outcomes, by remotely monitoring WBC levels before infections ensue.”
Patients place their finger onto an internet connected PointCheck device for one minute a day.
The device measures WBC levels without drawing blood.
The data is then sent to the patient’s care team, which can triage findings to help patients receive appropriate, preventive treatments under the direction of their clinician.
Michele Gaiotto, CEO of HTH VC, who leads the Company Series A
“We are excited to support Leuko as they scale and bring this clinically validated solution to the millions of patients who can live healthier lives through an increased monitoring of their weakened immune system.
“We believe that Leuko is building a strong team and technology platform and are honored to support its worthy mission.”
