Prana Thoracic Closes Series A Funding Round

Prana Thoracic Inc. has closed a $3 million founding Series A financing led by New World Angels.

New World Angels was joined by Johnson & Johnson Innovation – JJDC Inc., Texas Medical Center Venture Fund, and the University City Science Center’s Phase 1 Ventures. The Series A funds and a previously announced $3 million award from the Cancer Prevention & Research Institute of Texas will be used for product development and to support the company’s first-in-human clinical studies.
 
“Our technology provides a definitive answer to patients with lung nodules and allows physicians to intervene earlier in the lung cancer patient’s journey,” Prana Thoracic Co-Founder/CEO Joanna Nathan said. “Our team is grateful to have the support of our investors and excited to leverage this financing to accelerate our technology to the bedside.”
 
Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death in the United States, making up almost 25% of all cancer deaths. Most lung cancers are diagnosed late after the disease has spread, limiting survival. While more than 14 million U.S. patients each year are eligible for lung cancer screening, less than 5% of these patients are currently getting screened. With the company’s ThoraCore System, which is minimally invasive and lung-sparing, physicians can target lung nodules that are challenging to reach and accurately sample, facilitating definitive diagnosis to dramatically improve outcomes.
 
Prana’s technology was developed on the Texas Medical Center campus in collaboration with Precision Thoracic Corporation.
 
“We are so pleased to see this technology advance from the design and early testing phase to its new home at Prana and the important funding by the venture investors who share our passion for early diagnosis and treatment of lung cancer,” said Edward M Boyle, M.D., inventor and Precision Thoracic Corporation founder. “Now that the technology is continuing to be developed at Prana under Joanna Nathan’s leadership, we are well poised to prepare this for first in human use.”
 
“Prana’s technology was developed on the TMC campus, and we are excited to continue to support Prana in meeting its next milestone through funding from the TMC Venture Fund. The technology they are spearheading could be a game changer in how physicians detect and treat lung cancer. Congratulations to the team on this exciting announcement,” Texas Medical Center President/CEO William McKeon stated.
 
“We are delighted to support CEO Joanna Nathan and her team at Prana as they seek to develop solutions for the early detection and intervention of lung cancer,” added Micheal Haimour, a director of New World Angels and president of its LLC investing arm. Haimour has joined the company’s board.
 
Houston-based medical device startup Prana Thoracic Inc. devises solutions for early intervention in lung cancer. Prana Thoracic is developing the first minimally invasive, lung-sparing device for early intervention of suspicious pulmonary nodules. 
 
New World Angels (NWA) is a group of more than 100 accredited, private investors, operators, and entrepreneurs dedicated to providing equity capital and guidance to early-stage entrepreneurial companies. NWA members have extensive experience in founding, building, and managing companies in various industries. NWA has invested more than $28 million in growing U.S. and international companies. In addition to providing funding, NWA members make their expertise and resource networks available to portfolio companies to facilitate a company’s growth.