Issue #83 – Founders Cohort

Happy FemTech Friday 

We’re totally hyped to launch our First Cohort Program, which aims to drive our mission forward by focusing on research, funding and supporting founders for business growth. Next week , we’re starting the waitlist and dropping more details ! 

Anyone interested in collaborating with us on this project, feel free to reach out to me or forward this email to help us gather resources and spread the word.

We’re excited to announce the success of our Mother’s Day event in collaboration with Momly, held at Bangalore’s stunning venue, Bastian. The panel discussion featured a diverse range of guests, attendees, and speakers. Our Mother’s Day initiative wasn’t just about celebrating mothers; it also highlighted our commitment to promoting dialogue, innovation, and collaboration in women’s health. 

Here’s all that went down at the Mother’s Day celebrations:

Community Wins :

The founders of YON E Global from our ecosystem have been selected from a pool of hundreds of global contenders to participate in the Well4Tech FemTech Cohort in the United States from June 2nd – 9th. Representing YON E Global will be Roswitha Verwer (CEO & Founder) and Ricquelle Jeffrey (CSO).

• Hyderabad-based medical emergency response startup RED.HEALTH has raised $20 million in a Series B funding round led by Jungle Ventures. The investment round also saw participation from existing and new investors including HealthQuad, HealthX and Alteria Capital.
• Medical Devices Maker, Biorad, which is based in Mumbai is likely to receive Rs 400 Crore in investment from Kotak Strategic Securities India Fund II. Biorad Medisys is built upon three foundational pillars: Orthovasive, Neurovasive, and Indovasive.

• The Swiss-based medtech start-up Testmate Health has secured US$6m in funding to develop an at-home test for sexually transmitted infections (STI). Recent data show that rates of STIs in the US reached an all-time high in 2021 among both females and males, and all racial and ethnic groups.
• Meacor announced the successful closing of its $15 million Series A funding round. This substantial investment supports MEACOR’s mission to offer a novel transcatheter approach for the treatment of mitral and tricuspid valve regurgitation.
• Elegen,a next-generation DNA synthesis and production company, announced a Series B financing of $35 million led by Triatomic Capital. Also joining the round were strategic investors GSK, which recently entered a collaboration and licensing agreement with Elegen to use their proprietary cell-free DNA manufacturing technology.
• The US paediatric mental health platform Backpack Healthcare has secured US$14m in funding to support children and adolescents. Backpack Healthcare is a tech company that aims to “revolutionise” paediatric mental healthcare and make a positive impact on the lives of children and adolescents struggling with mental health challenges.
• May Health, a clinical-stage medical device company dedicated to helping those living with the endocrine disorder polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), today announced it has closed a $25 million Series B financing round, co-led by Bpifrance and Trill Impact with participation from founding investor Sofinnova Partners.
• CereVasc, Inc., a clinical-stage, medical device company developing novel treatments for neurological diseases, announced today it has successfully completed the initial closing of a $70 Million Series B financing. 

• A new study has the potential to advance how heart failure is detected in women, meaning more female patients could be diagnosed at an earlier stage. Researchers led by teams from the Universities of East Anglia (UEA), Sheffield and Leeds, have been able to fine-tune how magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is used to detect heart failure in women’s hearts, making it more accurate.
• Cancer incidence is rising at an alarming rate among younger adults. According to new research presented at a meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research, faster biological ageing could be the driving force. While chronological age refers to how long a person has been alive, biological age denotes the rate at which a person’s body is actually ageing.
• A new oral spray vaccine has proven to be effective in preventing recurring urinary tract infections (UTIs) for nine years, which could potentially be an alternative to antibiotic treatments. UTIs are the most common bacterial infection, affecting half of all women and one in five men. Recurrent infections needing antibiotics develop in 20 to 30 percent of cases, and overuse of antibiotics can lead to antibiotic-resistant infections.
• Baxter International Inc. announced U.S. FDA approval of an expanded indication for Clinolipid (Lipid Injectable Emulsion) to be used in pediatric patients, including preterm and term neonates. Clinolipid is Baxter’s proprietary mixed oil lipid emulsion that is used to provide calories and essential fatty acids in parenteral (intravenous) nutrition
• Exact Sciences has announced that the UK’s National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has recommended the use of its test to help guide chemotherapy decisions for node-positive breast cancer patients. NICE recommended the expanded use of the Oncotype DX Breast Recurrence Score test for women who have hormone receptor-positive (HR+), human epidermal growth factor receptor 2-negative (HER2-), early-stage breast cancer involving up to three positive nodes and who have been through the menopause.
• A recent study by the United States’s National Institutes of Health (NIH) found nutritional therapy may reduce the incidence and severity of bipolar disorder.Bipolar disorder is an abnormal fluctuation in a person’s mood, energy, activity level, and ability to concentrate. 
• Almost 600,000 people in England are waiting for gynaecology treatment. It is clear the current system is not fit for purpose. The NHS, across the board, is struggling to reduce waiting lists, but gynaecology health, in particular, has been sent to the back of the queue.Referral numbers are about 60 per cent higher than pre-pandemic, which represents one of the three highest specialties in terms of volume increase since pre-COVID.
• The US FDA has approved Roche’s human papillomavirus (HPV) self-testing kit, expanding screening options crucial to helping eliminate cervical cancer. Each year, more than 13,000 patients in the US are diagnosed with cervical cancer and approximately 4,000 die from the disease, caused by HPV infection.
• A new test for endometriosis has the potential to replace surgical diagnosis, data has shown.The US women’s health start-up Hera Biotech has reported positive interim results for its clinical trial of the Matrix™ endometriosis diagnostic test.
• Being sedentary or performing little activity in childhood is associated with heart enlargement, which progressed with an increase in time spent sitting or being inactive, according to new research. An excessive increase in heart mass and size, known as left ventricular hypertrophy, is a known risk factor for heart attacks, stroke and premature death in adults.

• Hempstreet initiated the concept of #PeriodFriendlyWorld and encouraged people to talk openly about menstrual health.
• Swarnima Bhattacharya, Co-founder of Gytree, was nominated as one of the final awardees of the Businessworld 40 Under 40 list.
• Banega Swast India featured Niramai Health Analytix and showcased how Niramai is using technology to find breast cancer early.

• Atraverse Medical, a San Diego-based medical device company, today announces the FDA clearance of its HOTWIRE™ radiofrequency (RF) guidewire, a novel device that enables zero exchange left-heart access while also acting as a rail for catheter-based therapy systems. This milestone achievement marks a significant step towards commercializing the company’s best-in-class left-heart access technology.
• TurningPoint Healthcare Solutions, announced today the acquisition of Fairway Health, a pioneering health technology company specializing in AI-powered tools that streamline complex clinical workflows. This strategic move will enable TurningPoint to deploy their industry-leading clinical expertise for greater impact and transform the healthcare experience for providers navigating clinical and administrative challenges.
• The Brydon Group purchased Micro-Dyn Medical Systems LLC, a healthcare claims pricing, grouping and editing software company. AvidBank and NorthCoast Mezzanine provided financing for the deal. Goodwin Procter was legal counsel and Mowery & Schoenfeld was accounting adviser to Brydon.
• Stereotaxis, a pioneer and global leader in surgical robotics for minimally invasive endovascular intervention, today announced that it has entered into a definitive share purchase agreement under which Stereotaxis will acquire Access Point Technologies EP (APT), a privately-held Minnesota-based developer of innovative electrophysiology catheters.

• The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) has announced an invitation for Expression of Interest (EoI) from experienced Indian agencies for the joint development and commercialization of a broad specificity glycoconjugate vaccine targeting Salmonella Typhi, Salmonella Paratyphi, and Salmonella Typhimurium.
• The Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) has constituted a sub-committee to examine matters regarding amendment of the Drugs Rules to incorporate necessary provisions for drugs to be declared as over-the-counter (OTC), in line with a recommendation of the Drugs Technical Advisory Board (DTAB) meeting.

• ‘FLiRT’ COVID-19 subvariant: 5 things you need to know: This variant spreads by the person’s respiratory droplets to others
• Why detecting Thalassemia at an early stage is important

See you next Friday, friends 👋
Navneet

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