UE LifeSciences Inc, a health technology firm that develops breast cancer screening devices, has raised a follow-on funding worth $1.2 million from Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, chairperson and managing director of biotechnology firm Biocon.
Existing investor Unitus Seed Fund also participated in the funding round, UE LifeSciences said in a statement.
The fund will be used to scale the company’s commercial operations in India.
UE LifeSciences' flagship product iBreastExam is a portable and radiation-free device. It performs bilateral breast examinations and produces results within five minutes while detecting lesions with sensitivity higher than 85%.
"In India, one in two women newly diagnosed with breast cancer succumb to it," said Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw. "UE LifeSciences’ affordable, high-tech iBreastExam device is positioned to address this challenge effectively in urban and rural India,†she said.
The device has been piloted for use in Rajasthan, Delhi and Maharashtra. Over 20,000 women have received the iBreastExam test in India, the company said.
UE LifeSciences, founded by Indian American entrepreneur Mihir Shah in 2015,
Aarin Capital did not participate in this round but continues to remain bullish and invested in the company, the fund's managing director Deepak Natraj said.
UE LifeSciences also received a Rs 50 lakh grant under Unitus Seed Fund’s StartHealth programme that selects India’s best early-stage health-tech startups innovating for the masses.
Healthcare technology startups have been attracting a lot of private investments. A report released jointly by consultancy KPMG and industry lobby group the Federation of Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) said startups can potentially thrive in India, which needs to invest $25-30 billion in its healthcare sector in the next five-six years.
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