HealthTell Raises $26M and Expands Scientific Advisory Board

HealthTell™, has raised $26M in new investment according to its latest filing with the SEC  and expanded its Clinical Advisory Board with the additions of John Galgiani, M.D., and Chaim Putterman, M.D., as Clinical Advisors.

HealthTell logo

 

Healthtell is an early stage Life Sciences company that utilizes an Immunosignature™ Technology for accurate and timely detection and monitoring of more than 30 progressive diseases. Based on robust, proprietary technology, the company is developing the first and only diagnostic platform capable of assessing an individual’s immune system response to specific diseases. This disruptive technology enables physicians to detect the presence or absence of a disease in its earliest stage, improving patient outcomes and reducing healthcare expenditures. Applicable to a broad range of therapeutic areas, HealthTell is empowering physicians and patients to proactively manage one’s health and make more informed decisions.

HealthTell has raised $40 million to date; following $14 million raised during Series A financing.  The early focus of the company was to create a stable, reproducible manufacturing facility in Chandler, AZ, currently producing nearly 100,000 tests a year.  HealthTell has also established numerous relationships with key centers of excellence, academic institutions, and hospitals throughout the country.

Since their incorporation in 2012, HealthTell has been laying the groundwork for a series of next-generation diagnostic tests.  The Series B funding will allow the company to begin commercializing panels of tests for autoimmune diseases, such as lupus.  These diseases mimic many other conditions, can take years to diagnose, and are difficult to treat.  HealthTell believes their platform is ideally suited for tackling these complex diseases, and providing rheumatologists with a whole new level of information on patient health and disease progression.

In parallel, HealthTell has developed a fast growing pharmaceutical services business that will ultimately culminate in high value companion diagnostic tests for new and existing drugs.

Bill Colston, PhD, CEO, is optimistic about HealthTell’s impact in the drug development process, “Our pharmaceutical customers continue to reinforce the need for new tools to stratify patients for drug development trials and to select patients most likely to respond to specific treatments.”

The Series B financing was led by Third Point Ventures.  “We’re very proud of the HealthTell team. They executed flawlessly on a very daunting set of commercialization challenges.   We’re also excited to welcome Jason Hong, PhD as a new Board Member, and the Third Point team as partners in building a valuable and impactful business,” announced Paul Conley, PhD, Managing Director, Paladin Capital Group, who led the Series A round.

The science behind HealthTell’s platform originated from the Arizona State University Biodesign Institute, and has been well vetted in scientific peer-reviewed literature.  Rather than targeting the disease itself, the HealthTell test profiles the immune system of a patient and looks for patterns that correspond to the patient’s health, all from a single drop of blood. Like genetic sequencing, the test is a discovery platform that can be used for many different applications, but it has the added benefits of being simple to run, inexpensive, and easy to interpret. HealthTell’s scientific co-founders are Stephen Albert Johnston, PhD, and  Neal Woodbury, PhD.  who are co-directors of the Woodbury Center for  Innovations in Medicine at the The Biodesign Institute, at Arizona State University in Tempe, Arizona. Dr. Johnston and Dr. Woodbury co-founded HealthTell in 2010 with a goal to translate the inventions/innovations they developed in diagnosis and peptide chip production to transform healthcare.

 

“HealthTell is excited to welcome Dr. Galgiani and Dr. Putterman to our growing team of Clinical Advisors. They will provide valuable insights to expand our focus beyond oncology to infectious and autoimmune diseases,” said Bill Colston, Ph.D., CEO of HealthTell. “Our robust and unique test provides a snapshot of the immune system’s response to disease. We are grateful to have the opportunity to collaborate with clinicians and researchers of this caliber.”

Valley Fever is an infectious disease caused by fungus from the soil that is released into the air. It is endemic to Arizona and the San Joaquin Valley of California. While not a very prevalent disease, it results in over 20,000 infections annually. Often it is confused with community-acquired pneumonia and treated erroneously with antibiotics. In a small percent of patients it can be life threatening. Dr. Galgiani has devoted his career to raising awareness and improving outcomes for people affected by Valley Fever. He is the Director of the Valley Fever Center for Excellence and a tenured professor at the University of Arizona College of Medicine with 35 years of experience in medical mycology.

Dr. Chaim Putterman is Chief of the Division of Rheumatology and Professor of Medicine, Microbiology and Immunology at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York. The principal investigator on several research projects funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) involving systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), Dr. Putterman provides expertise for this debilitating and complicated disease in which the immune system produces antibodies to cells within the body, leading to extensive inflammation and tissue damage. The Lupus Foundation of America estimates that 1.5 million Americans suffer from SLE (often referred to as lupus), a disease which primarily affects women. New diagnostics are necessary to provide earlier detection of lupus, better monitor patients and help prevent progression of the disease.

 

 

About HealthTell, Inc.

HealthTell is committed to empowering the next generation of diagnostics and therapeutics for complex immune-mediated diseases such as cancer, autoimmune disorders, and infectious diseases. Based on robust proprietary technology, HealthTell is developing the first and only diagnostic platform capable of assessing an individual’s immune system response to specific diseases. Applicable to a broad range of therapeutic areas, HealthTell is empowering physicians and patients to proactively manage health and, make more informed decisions. For more information, please visit: http://www.healthtell.com/

About Third Point Ventures

Third Point Ventures is the emerging technology investment arm of Third Point LLC.  Third Point LLC is an SEC-registered investment adviser based in New York City.  The firm was founded in 1995 by Daniel S. Loeb, who serves as its CEO and oversees all investment activity.  Third Point employs an event-driven, value-oriented investment style.  Third Point’s team includes professionals focused on investment activity, risk management and trading.  This team is supported by highly experienced accounting, operations, investor relations and marketing, and legal and compliance professionals.  For more information, visit www.thirdpointventures.com.

 

Posted in AZBio News.