Issue # 109 – India IVF Secures $1.25M Pre-Series A Funding

India IVF, a pioneering fertility provider founded by Dr Richika Sahay and Dr Somendra Shukla, has secured $1.25 million in pre-Series A funding from Tomorrow Capital, a $100 million venture capital fund dedicated to supporting early-stage, transformative consumer healthcare businesses. This investment represents India IVF’s first external funding since its inception, following a decade of profitable operations across its five North Indian centres, which include clinics in Delhi NCR and Srinagar.

Deep-Tech focused, early-stage venture fund, Unicorn India Ventures and CanBank Venture Capital Fund, from VI Fund “Empower India Fund” led an undisclosed investment into the Mumbai-based healthcare payments company, QubeHealth, as part of its Pre-Series-A round, setting up the company for its upcoming Series-A round at a valuation of Rs 270 crore.

• Impilo, a Philadelphia, PA-based provider of a digital health platform, raised $11.5M in Series A funding.
• OneSkin, a San Francisco, CA-based biotech skin health brand, closed its Series A funding.
• Genesis Therapeutics, a Burlingame, CA-based company providing artificial intelligence (AI) technologies to create medicines for patients, announced an equity investment from NVIDIA’s NVentures.
• TRexBio, a San Francisco, CA-based biotechnology company decoding human tissue immune biology to create new therapeutics, raised $84M in Series B funding.
• Paloma Health, a London, UK-based AI-enabled healthtech startup reducing wait times for access to critical NHS health services, raised £2M in Pre-Seed funding.
• Reneural Technologies (fka CardioCrown), a Hatfield, UK-based provider of a neurorehabilitation platform, raised £475K in PreSeed funding. The round, which was led by SFC Capital, with participation from undisclosed investors, was completed in conjunction with Innovate UK’s Investor Partnerships SME Round 7. 
• Stepful, a startup using AI to train entry-level healthcare workers, has raised a $31.5M Series B led by Oak HC/FT, with participation from Y Combinator, Reach Capital, and AlleyCorp. This follows their $12M Series A raised less than nine months ago.
• Mediaire, a Berlin, Germany-based company developing AI-powered diagnostic solutions for MRI imaging, raised €12M in funding.The round was led by LBO France with participation from IBB Ventures, the Swiss family office Wille Finance, HTGF, LIFTT, and Gateway Ventures.

• International Diabetes Federation (IDF) global research reveals that 86 per cent of Indians living with diabetes have experienced anxiety, depression, or another mental health condition as a result of their diabetes. The fear of developing complications in 76 per cent was the most common factor leading to mental health conditions, other factors included daily diabetes management in 72 per cent, accessing support from a healthcare professional in 65 per cent and accessing medicines and supplies in 61 per cent.
• The British Menopause Society (BMS) has published its response to updated menopause guidance issued by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), following a review and formal consultation process of guidance first published in 2015. The organisation acknowledged several of the recommendations contained within the new guidance but has also identified some limitations for healthcare professionals to consider when advising patients.
• An experimental vaccine could offer fresh hope to women diagnosed with an aggressive and hard-to-treat form of breast cancer, new research suggests.The vaccine appears to be safe and effective against triple-negative breast cancer — a type that can’t be treated with hormone therapy because it isn’t driven by any of the three hormones that typically fuel breast cancer.
• Overtreatment of prostate cancer is increasing in the United States among men with limited life expectancy, a new study reports.Procedures like radiation therapy and prostate surgery are being employed more often in these men, causing side effects like incontinence and impotence without adding any more years to their lives, researchers found.
• GSK plc announced the results of a GSK-sponsored multinational survey designed to raise awareness of challenges that people with gynaecologic cancers may experience. The survey, which was conducted by The Harris Poll and included responses from 818 participants from 10 countries who have been affected by endometrial, ovarian, cervical, vaginal, and/or vulvar cancers, found that 73% of patients did not feel empowered to overcome their cancers, and 78% of patients experienced challenges in accessing the treatment they need. The survey also identified opportunities for more comprehensive patient support, such as greater understanding of biomarker testing to inform treatment and emotional health resources.
• A new study finds that a quarter of (no doubt exhausted) breastfeeding moms admit to falling asleep while their baby was feeding, a moment that can raise risks for infant suffocation. That’s because whenever a baby falls asleep in an area that’s got soft cushions and cramped surroundings — as can happen in sofas, easy chairs and beds — the risk of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) rises, explained a team from the University of Virginia (UVA) in Charlottesville.
• Researchers think they’ve figured out why cancer treatments that harness a person’s immune system to fight a tumor can cause heart damage in rare instances.Further, what they’ve learned sheds light on how this potentially deadly side effect might be prevented.
• Rates of anxiety and depression among U.S. adults, especially younger folks, continues to rise, the latest federal data shows.Nearly 1 in every 5 (18.2%) adults reported anxiety issues in 2022, up from 15.6% in 2019, reported Emily Terlizzi and Benjamin Zablotsky, researchers at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
• Men who undergo prostate cancer treatment face a greatly increased risk of life-altering, long-term complications, a new study finds.Surgery for prostate cancers increases a man’s risk of urinary or sexual complications more than sevenfold, researchers reported Nov. 7 in the journal JAMA Oncology.
• Fourteen percent of the world’s people — more than 800 million — now have diabetes, a doubling of the global rate for the blood sugar disease since 1990, new statistics show. Type 2 diabetes, which makes up 95% of cases, is surging in poorer countries. However, across these resource-poor nations, only half of people get treated, said a team reporting Nov. 13 in The Lancet journal.
• Dementia strikes all races, but new research suggests thinking declines in poor seniors are often overlooked.Among a group of more than 200 low-income patients who were treated at community health centres, 3 of 4 had undiagnosed cognitive issues, researchers reported   recently in the journal JAMA Network Open.
• People with both type 2 diabetes and chronic kidney disease face a heart health double-whammy, a new study says.Men with both diabetes and kidney disease will develop heart health problems 28 years earlier than those without either condition, researchers reported today at an American Heart Association meeting in Chicago.
• A trio of risk factors not only increase your risk of stroke, but they also raise the odds that such a stroke will be debilitating, a new study warns. What are these three big dangers? Smoking, having high blood pressure and suffering from atrial fibrillation all significantly raise the risk of suffering a severe stroke, researchers reported Nov. 13 in the journal Neurology.
• Obesity, alcohol use and other factors are driving up rates of fatty liver disease among American adults, new research warns. By 2018, federal data showed that 42% of adults had some form of fatty liver disease — higher than prior estimates, according to a team led by Dr. Juan Pablo Arab, a liver specialist with at Virginia Commonwealth University’s Institute for Liver Disease and Metabolic Health, in Richmond.
• Vitamin D supplements might lower blood pressure in seniors who are obese, reducing their heart health risk, a new study says. But taking more than the recommended daily dose will not provide additional health benefits, researchers report in the Journal of the Endocrine Society.

• Qiagen, a Netherlands-based leading global provider of Sample to Insight solutions, announced a collaboration with the McGill University Centre for Microbiome Research to support microbiome research activities and outcomes.
• Ginkgo Bioworks, which is building the leading platform for cell programming and biosecurity, announced the completion of the first milestone of a previously announced partnership with Merck, known as MSD outside of the United States and Canada, focused on improving biologic manufacturing. As part of this milestone completion, Ginkgo will receive a research milestone payment of $9 million in cash.
• Evvy, expanded into treatments with a new line of prescription-grade products for vaginal symptom relief. The launch marks a significant milestone for the female-founded startup, as it’s the first time patients can access Evvy’s prescription products without first taking their vaginal microbiome test.
• Parallel Fluidics, a company developing on-demand microfluidic manufacturing solutions with applications in IVF and other life science fields, has secured $7 million in seed funding. The round was led by J2 Ventures with participation from 8VC and Praxis.

• The Union Ministry of Ayush (MoA) is working closely with the World Health Organization (WHO) to develop an International Herbal Pharmacopoeia (IHP) to set global quality and efficacy standards for Ayush products.
• The National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories (NABL), under the Quality Council of India (QCI), has announced a collaborative effort with Man-Made Textile Research Association (MANTRA) in Surat to deliver a specialized technical training programme on medical textiles testing.
• The Department of Pharmaceuticals (DoP) has released the operational guidelines for the newly announced central sector scheme for Strengthening of Medical Device Industry (SMDI), aiming at providing the much needed thrust to address the unmet needs of the medical devices industry in the next three years.

📳 – Quick Reads: 

• Good Night’s Sleep Wards Off High Blood Pressure in Teens. High blood pressure is a rare health issue among teens, but U.S. case numbers are creeping upwards.
• Weight Loss Meds Help Stroke Survivors Prevent Stroke Recurrence, Death.  The weight-loss drug Ozempic can help reduce stroke patients’ risk of a heart attack or death.
  
• Weekend workouts as effective as daily exercise. According to a US study, people who workout only on the weekends, for at least 150 minutes, had a lower risk of developing 264 diseases, same as those who workout throughout the week

See you next Friday, friends 👋
Navneet

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