Personalized medicine test maker AssureRx Health has closed an $11 million Series B round of funding.
The Cincinnati-area company will use the funding to expand sales and marketing for its GeneSightRx test, which helps doctors pick the right psychiatric drugs for patients based on their genes. The company launched the test in 2009.
AssureRx will also use the investment to develop an unspecified second product, according to a statement from the company. In the past, Mason, Ohio-based AssureRx has said that future products could include tests that help doctors choose medications for patients who have neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s or Parkinson’s, as well as disorders such as attention-deficit hyperactivity and post-traumatic stress.
The financing was led by California-based Claremont Creek Ventures and Sequoia Capital, and included participation of existing investors North Coast Angel Fund, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Mayo Clinic and CincyTech, as well as new investor Allos Ventures.
AssureRx CEO James Burns didn’t immediately return a call.
The GeneSightRx test measures and analyzes 50 clinically important genetic variants of six genes that affect patients’ responses to psychiatric medications. Those genetic variants are then analyzed against 26 psychiatric drugs to help physicians select the appropriate medications. The test uses a cheek swab, mathematical algorithms and bioinformatics to narrow drug choices to those that work with a patient’s genes.
AssureRx is benefiting from its association with the hot field of personalized medicine. The worldwide pharmaceutical, medical device and diagnostics segment of the personalized medicine market is $24 billion and growing at 10 percent a year, according to a 2010 report from PricewaterhouseCoopers.
A Deep-dive Into Specialty Pharma
A specialty drug is a class of prescription medications used to treat complex, chronic or rare medical conditions. Although this classification was originally intended to define the treatment of rare, also termed “orphan” diseases, affecting fewer than 200,000 people in the US, more recently, specialty drugs have emerged as the cornerstone of treatment for chronic and complex diseases such as cancer, autoimmune conditions, diabetes, hepatitis C, and HIV/AIDS.
The report predicted that personalized medicine would transform the field of healthcare.
Top Ohio institutions Cleveland Clinic and Ohio State University are also making big pushes into the field of personalized medicine.
