British digital health start-up Medopad has received a further £19.4m ($25million) in funding to support new clinical studies and the development of its technology.
The company will use the fresh funding primarily to explore digital biomarker discovery, a relatively new category in medicine aimed at collecting data that can predict the risk of an individual developing specific diseases, then track their condition progression and inform diagnosis, using digital technologies.
The latest funding round, led by Leaps by Bayer, brings the total amount of money raised by Medopad to £39m ($50m).
The new investment will additionally support clinical trials already underway at Medopad, including a three-year deal with Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust that will trial a digital application for aortic stenosis (AS), a condition where the heart valve narrows and restricts blood flow.
Medopad hopes its technology can speed up the timing of intervention to improve prognosis in patients with severe asymptomatic AS.
Professor James Cotton at the Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust said: “This is a very exciting project and fits with our ethos of ‘proactive’ and ‘one to many care’ which, we think, will benefit patients and release valuable clinical time.”
Medopad also has three feasibility studies underway with a Contract Research Organisation that seek to identify gait and voice-based digital biomarkers in patients with Parkinson’s, diabetic neuropathy and depression.
Since being established in 2011, Medopad has expanded its capabilities beyond its core remote patient monitoring product and now offers a range of services to global life sciences and technology partners.
Medopad’s app and clinician platform is designed to inform clinical decision-making and support people with medical conditions while saving clinicians time, with the view to driving better treatment for people with chronic illnesses.
The company partnered with Chinese technology giant Tencent in October 2018 and launched a $10m partnership programme in the same month.
Dan Vahdat, founder and CEO of Medopad, told Digital Health News last year that the company was aiming to reach 1bn patient around the world.
Commenting on Medopad’s successful Series B funding, Vahdat said:“Medopad has a bold mission to help people live their life to the fullest – one that requires long-term commitment and partnership to achieve.
“We are delighted that Leaps by Bayer who participated in our Series A round have now become the lead investor in our Series B.
“We have found the ideal partner with the dedication to help us reach our vision of creating a world where each person lives their life to the fullest.”