Participated · Series A · Mar 2018

Cernostics is a Pittsburgh, PA–based company advancing the TissueCypher® Barrett’s Esophagus Assay. The assay predicts risk of development of esophageal cancer in patients with Barrett’s esophagus and provides actionable information to gastroenterologists, pathologists and patients. Led by CEO Mike Hoerres, the company focuses on next‑generation cancer diagnostics and prognostics. Cernostics raised $2.5M in a Series A1 financing and has now brought total funding to $13M. The company intends to use the new funds to intensify clinical and market development studies for its assay. Backers include Illumina Ventures, UPMC Enterprises, Novitas Capital, Geisinger Health System, the Pittsburgh Life Sciences Greenhouse and Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern PA. Cernostics develops the TissueCypher™ platform, which uses digitally scanned biopsy-slide images to measure and analyze more than 13,000 features per patient sample, including multiple protein biomarkers. The platform produces individualized, actionable scores that indicate diagnosis, prognosis, or response to therapy. The company has developed a test for patients with Barrett’s Esophagus that identifies high-risk individuals who are nearly 10 times more likely to progress to esophageal cancer within five years compared with low-risk patients. Cernostics says the test could enable earlier intervention for high-risk patients and spare low-risk patients from frequent, unnecessary endoscopies and treatments. The company is led by CEO Mike Hoerres and intends to use the new funding to grow and accelerate introduction of its Barrett’s Esophagus diagnostic test. Prior investors include Geisinger, Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern Pennsylvania, and the Pittsburgh Life Sciences Greenhouse. Cernostics develops TissueCypher, a molecular diagnostic that simultaneously evaluates multiple cells and processes in a single biopsy to assess risk of progression from Barrett’s esophagus to esophageal cancer. The company is working with Geisinger Health System and collaborating with the University of Pennsylvania, University of Pittsburgh and the Academic Medical Center in Amsterdam for clinical validation. Its partnership with the Academic Medical Center provides access to one of the largest Barrett’s esophagus patient registries, which Cernostics is using alongside other data to complete validation studies. Cernostics is also applying the TissueCypher technology to develop tests for lung, breast and colon cancers. Financially, the company received a $100,000 follow-on grant from Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern Pennsylvania and previously raised a $1.4 million Series B in the third quarter last year. The Series B funding is being used to speed commercialization of its lead diagnostic. Cernostics develops TissueCipher Pathology, a diagnostic approach that combines digital imaging pathology, fluorescence biomarkers, informatics and EMR systems to predict risk of progression from Barrett’s esophagus to esophageal cancer. The company aims to speed up testing, reduce costs, improve test quality and enable individualized patient treatments, and intends to replace a current test that generates false positives and can’t detect abnormal cell structures. Cernostics is based in Danville, Pennsylvania, and formed a partnership with Geisinger Health System in 2010. Earlier this year it added two scientific advisers: Dr. John M. Inadomi of the University of Washington and Robert F. Murphy of Carnegie Mellon University. Financially, Cernostics raised $1.4 million in a recent financing and has previously received investments from Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern Pennsylvania. Cernostics has developed a systems approach to evaluating tissues via anatomic pathology that simultaneously measures immune, stromal, stem cell and tumor biomarkers on a single slide while preserving tissue structure. The company is developing molecular diagnostic and prognostic tests, including a test to predict the risk of developing esophageal cancer in patients with Barrett’s Esophagus. Cernostics intends to validate that test using biopsy specimens and clinical data from Geisinger Health System, Danville, to select and refine biomarkers and complete software development. Leadership cited in the article includes CEO Mike Hoerres and Rebecca Critchley-Thorne, Ph.D., Director of Biomarker & Diagnostic Development. The company plans additional clinical validation studies that will support commercialization of the test via Cernostics’ clinical reference laboratory. Financially, the company received a $100K loan to fund the validation work.