ASU startup Viomics wins funding from Arizona Commerce Authority
Arizona State University startup company Viomics has received $250,000 from the Arizona Commerce Authority (ACA) to continue developing innovative cancer detection technologies that save lives by enabling the early diagnosis and treatment of cancer.
Viomics, a molecular diagnostics company, is one of six startup companies to win ACA’s Spring 2013 Arizona Innovation Challenge, a technology commercialization competition that awards $3 million each year to Arizona’s most promising technology ventures.
A pioneer in the field of molecular diagnostic engineering, Viomics discovers, develops and delivers paradigm-changing cancer detection technologies to enable early and targeted intervention that cures previously deadly cancers. Its products detect specific blood-borne markers generated by the body in response to certain kinds of cancers.
Its first commercial product is LungVantage, a test that detects lung cancer with more than 90 percent accuracy and close to zero percent false positives at all stages, including the earliest stages, when it is still quite treatable. It is the most accurate and least expensive test for non-small cell lung cancer available today. Viomics is also developing tests to screen for breast, liver, pancreatic and colon cancers and is able to look at specific levels of RNA in plasma in pharmaceutical clinical trials using the Viomics ActiveTargeting test for ALK inhibitors.
The company plans to use the Arizona Innovation Challenge funding to finish a clinical trial of the LungVantage test.
“Winning the Arizona Innovation Challenge will allow us to finalize our clinical trial and commercialize LungVantage sooner, and also accelerate our fundraising efforts,” said David Mallery, president and co-founder of Viomics.
Viomics was founded by Mallery and Scott Morris, chief scientific officer. The Viomics team also includes Troy Shelton, chief operating officer; Kyle Hogarth, senior medical officer; and Glen Weiss, clinical oncology advisor.
The company is a past winner of ASU’s Edson Student Entrepreneur Initiative, a startup accelerator that provides funding, office space, mentorship and training to student entrepreneurs from all university disciplines. The Edson Accelerator is a part of ASU’s Venture Catalyst unit, a joint initiative between the Office of Knowledge Enterprise Development and Arizona Technology Enterprises to propel ASU’s entrepreneurial efforts forward.