HOUSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Prana Thoracic, Inc. (“Prana” or the “Company”), a medical device company developing the first minimally invasive lung tissue excision tool for early intervention in lung cancer, has announced the closing of a $3 million founding Series A financing led by New World Angels. New World Angels was joined by Johnson & Johnson Innovation – JJDC, Inc., Texas Medical Center Venture Fund, and the University City Science Center’s Phase 1 Ventures. The Series A funds and a previously announced $3M award from the Cancer Prevention & Research Institute of Texas will be used for product development and to support the Company’s first-in-human clinical studies.
“Our technology provides a definitive answer to patients with lung nodules and allows physicians to intervene earlier in the lung cancer patient’s journey,” said Joanna Nathan, CEO, and co-founder of Prana. “Our team is grateful to have the support of our investors and excited to leverage this financing to accelerate our technology to the bedside.”
Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death in the U.S., making up almost 25% of all cancer deaths. Most lung cancers are diagnosed late after the disease has spread, limiting survival. While over 14 million patients in the U.S. each year are eligible for lung cancer screening, less than 5% of these patients are currently getting screened. With the Company’s ThoraCore System – which is minimally invasive and lung-sparing – physicians will be able to target lung nodules that are challenging to reach and accurately sample, facilitating definitive diagnosis to dramatically improve outcomes.
Prana’s technology was developed on the Texas Medical Center campus, in collaboration with Precision Thoracic Corporation.
“We are so pleased to see this technology advance from the design and early testing phase to its new home at Prana and the important funding by the venture investors who share our passion for early diagnosis and treatment of lung cancer,” said Edward M Boyle, MD, inventor and founder of Precision Thoracic Corporation. “Now that the technology is continuing to be developed at Prana under Joanna Nathan’s leadership, we are well poised to prepare this for first in human use.”
“Prana’s cutting-edge technology was developed on the TMC campus, and we are excited to continue to support Prana in meeting its next milestone through funding from the TMC Venture Fund. The technology they are spearheading could be a game changer in how physicians detect and treat lung cancer. Congratulations to the team on this exciting announcement,” said William McKeon, President & CEO of the Texas Medical Center.
Commenting on the investment, Micheal Haimour, a Director of New World Angels and President of its LLC investing in the Company, said, “We are delighted to support CEO Joanna Nathan and her team at Prana as they seek to develop solutions for the early detection and intervention of lung cancer.” Micheal Haimour has joined the Company as a board member.
ABOUT PRANA THORACIC
Houston-based medical device startup Prana Thoracic, Inc. is dedicated to developing solutions for early intervention in lung cancer. Prana Thoracic is developing the first minimally invasive, lung-sparing device for early intervention of suspicious pulmonary nodules. For more information, please visit www.pranathoracic.com.
ABOUT NEW WORLD ANGELS
New World Angels (NWA) (www.newworldangels.com) is a group of over 100 accredited, private investors, operators, and entrepreneurs dedicated to providing equity capital and guidance to early-stage entrepreneurial companies. Members of NWA have extensive experience in founding, building, and managing companies in a wide variety of industries. NWA has invested over $28MM in growing US and international companies. In addition to providing funding, NWA members make their expertise and resource networks available to portfolio companies to facilitate a company’s growth.
