Teal Health raises $10 million to create at-home cervical cancer screenings

The process of getting screened for cervical cancer is quite scary. It’s a once-a-year, sometimes life-changing treatment that involves the bright lights of a doctor’s office and an unpleasant placement that always takes too long.

It’s no wonder why Kara Egan and Dr. Avnesh Thakor saw the potential to make this process more convenient for women. The two got together in 2020 and started Teal Heatha company that shares women’s health resources and wants to create products so that women can do cervical cancer screening at home. It will be the first product of its kind and is awaiting FDA approval.

The company came out of stealth in January 2023 and began clinical trials in November of that year.

Investors are eager for this idea. Today, Teal Health is announcing a $10 million seed round led by Emerson Collective and Forerunner, bringing its total funding to $23 million. Other investors in the round include Serena Ventures and Chelsea Clinton.

“Childhood cervical cancer screenings are the most important and frequent entry point to women’s health,” co-founder and CEO Egan told TechCrunch. “More than 1 in 4 women are currently missing out on this life-saving screening.”

Pending FDA approval, Teal Health will release the Teal Wand for home use. A person will be able to request a collection kit at home, and the company will provide a telehealth visit. – approved laboratory. “River support is available to answer any questions along the way,” Egan said.

Cervical cancer used to be one of the leading causes of cancer death in women, but more prevention and screening have helped reduce it. According to the American Cancer Society. In the past few years, we have seen these declines stabilize as more women avoid preventive and screening measures.

“Women want to check their health, but they’re very balanced,” Egan said. This white space in the market came at a good time – interest to be supported women’s health companies has increased every year.

In fact, Egan called the fundraising process “energizing.” He met his lead investors through his professional network, especially since he had previously been an investor himself.

Teal Health will use the fresh capital to support the launch of Teal Wand.

“This funding will help us further develop our robust telehealth platform, patient portal, educational resources and customer support tools, as well as continue to grow our phenomenal team of medical providers,” said Egan. “We are focused on our US expansion plans”

There are many women’s health companies in the area, but they don’t have to provide a home device for cervical cancer. Teal’s main competition is the standard OBGYN, but the company hopes that providing a convenient alternative—which means making an appointment and not having to go in person to see a clinician—will attract more customers to the product.

“Standard care is no longer working for women, and we’re seeing that with declining screening rates and an increase in cancer,” Egan said. “By making this critical preventive screening more accessible, convenient and convenient, we have the power to increase screening rates and work toward eliminating cervical cancer in the United States.”