IP Group, CIC and Johnson & Johnson have returned for a $52.2m series B round in Inivata, a spinout of Cancer Research UK and University of Cambridge.
Inivata, a UK-based oncology genomics technology spinout, closed a £39.8m ($52.2m) series B round today backed by Cambridge Innovation Capital (CIC), the patient capital affiliate of University of Cambridge.
Commercialisation firm IP Group also took part, as did Johnson & Johnson Innovation – JJDC, the healthcare group’s corporate venturing subsidiary, and Woodford Patient Capital Trust, operated by fund manager Woodford Investment Management.
RT Ventures also contributed to the round, which was oversubscribed and raised over two tranches. The first close was achieved in August 2018, though further details could not be ascertained.
Founded in 2014, Inivata has developed a blood test that extracts essential genomic information to detect cancer mutations and indicate an individual’s response to a therapy, helping clinicians make informed choices in the treatment of their patients.
The lead product, InVisionFirst-Lung is aimed at patients suffering from non-small-cell lung carcinoma and is commercially available. Inivata is partnering pharmaceutical and biotech firms on the development of its technology for other types of cancer.
Inivata was spun out of University of Cambridge and charity Cancer Research UK.
The series B funding will accelerate the development of InVision into additional cancer indications and support continued company growth.
Imperial Innovations, which has since rebranded to Touchstone Innovations and acquired by IP Group, contributed to a $45m series A round in 2016 together with CIC, Woodford Patient Capital Trust and Johnson & Johnson Innovation – JJDC.
Inivata had already secured $6m in a seed round in 2014 led by Imperial Innovations, with participation from CIC and JJDC.
Michael Anstey, investment director at Cambridge Innovation Capital, said: “Inivata has made great progress since our first investment when it was spun out of Cancer Research UK’s laboratories in Cambridge.
“We are delighted to have helped Inivata develop from a startup through to commercialising its products. InVisionFirst- Lung will improve the accuracy and the turnaround time of test results for patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer.
“We look forward to continuing to support Inivata as it grows and develops its InVision platform further.”
