Israeli MedTech startup Limaca Medical, which develops an endoscopic ultrasound biopsy solution, announced a $1.25 million funding round out of a total of $1.5 million. The investment was led by Trendlines Group, with participation from Vincent Tchenguiz’s Agriline, Limaca Chairman Carl Rickenbaugh, and a private investor.
Breaking into the pancreatic cancer market
Limaca’s Precision technology deploys an automated revolving needle that acquires high-quality core tissue samples. This enables medical personnel a more efficient and accurate sampling to determine cancer diagnoses. The company states that its technology provides ten times greater procedural efficiency with less trauma than today’s endoscopic standard of care for greater diagnostic accuracy and patient-specific treatment to achieve better clinical outcomes.
Limaca’s CEO Assaf Klein commented, “We designed Precision to improve upon endoscopic biopsies and make a substantial leap forward in this critical diagnostic procedure to advance precision treatment and achieve superior outcomes for cancer patients.”
The company has already started first-in-human studies at Israel’s Rambam Health Care Campus, where Limaca is hoping to achieve its technological superiority in demonstrating diagnostic success of its cancer hunting biopsy needle. Iyad Khamaysi, MD, Director, Invasive Endoscopy Unit, Rambam Health Care, and one of Limaca’s founders, states, “Precision exceeded all clinical expectations for endoscopic biopsy while demonstrating clear safety in our cases.”
According to company reports, it will aim to initially penetrate the $850 million pancreatic cancer market, where outdated traditional tools often fail in securing quality tissue samples, requiring second and even third tries. In addition, the company claims that its Precision product is a viable solution that addresses biopsy sampling for the diagnosis of lung cancer, liver biopsy, lymphoma, and other cancers where endoscopic biopsy is feasible and subcutaneous tissue sampling is difficult.
Carl Rickenbaugh, Limaca’s Chairman, comments “The medical provider and payor markets respond to superior devices when they demonstrate strong clinical relevancy. We built Limaca to address the need for a more efficient endoscopic procedure for the provider, and for the cancer patient and payor, greater certainty to gain sufficient sample quality and quantity needed for pathology as well as more stringent genetic testing requirements.”
Limaca Medical, which is a portfolio company of The Trendlines Group, was founded in 2017 by CEO Assaf Klein and Iyad Khamaysi, MD. The company will use the newly acquired funds to complete its first-in-human trials, fund post-market clinical studies, as well as obtain regulatory approvals.
