Scottish health startup Carcinotech has raised £4.2m to further develop its 3D-printed micro-tumour technology.
Founded in 2018, Carcinotech works with pharma companies, clinicians and surgeons to safely test new medications on models of cancer cells.
The Edinburgh-based firm manufactures 3D-printed tumours based on patients’ biopsies and blood samples, which can then be tested on to determine the best treatments for the patient.
“Our vision is to be at the forefront of cancer drug testing and provide personalised medicine testing to every individual suffering from cancer to improve their treatment and chance of survival,” said Carcinotech founder and CEO Ishani Malhotra.
“Working with global partners…Carcinotech aims to significantly accelerate oncology drug development.”
The investment round was led by Eos Advisory alongside the Maven Capital-managed Investment Fund for Scotland (IFS), Scottish Enterprise, Old College Capital and Investing Women Angels.
“The company is ideally placed to capitalise on the need for more predictive, non-animal models for testing of anti-cancer drugs and the huge opportunity for personalised medicine in cancer treatment,” said Dr David Milroy, a partner at Maven.
“Carcinotech’s models are reproducible and provided in a familiar format for high-throughput screening, key requirements for adoption by the pharmaceutical industry for the testing of drug candidates.”
The funding, which represents the first deal from the £150m British Business Bank-backed IFS, will support the company’s planned US expansion later this year.
Additional funding came from existing investors Tricapital, SIS Ventures, Gabriel Investment Syndicate and Alba Equity.
The latest funding round follows a £1.6m raise in 2022.