Dascena Secures $50M Series B To Improve Patient Outcomes

Dascena Inc., a machine-learning diagnostic algorithm company, closed on a $50 million Series B financing round led by Frazier Healthcare Partners.

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The Oakland, California-based company targets early disease intervention, such as acute decompensation (heart failure), sepsis and acute kidney injury, to improve patient care outcomes.

In addition to Frazier, the funding round also included Longitude Capital, existing investor Euclidean Capital and an undisclosed investor, according to a company press release.

Ritankar Das, founder and CEO of Dascena, said in a written statement that more than 250,000 patients die of sepsis annually. Dascena’s flagship sepsis algorithm, InSight, has helped reduce the number of deaths by 58 percent and decrease the length of hospital stay by 21 percent, in patients with sepsis, according to the company.

“Machine learning is transforming how we solve problems across industries, and by applying this technology to health care, we will enhance the quality and efficiency of patient care,” Das added.

Dascena’s sepsis outcomes earned the company, in collaboration with Beckman Coulter Inc., a Danaher company, a $1.3 million contract last October from the DRIVe (Division of Research, Innovation, and Ventures) established by the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA). The contract calls for the companies to  develop and commercialize a novel machine-learning-based sepsis detection algorithm.

Other patient care outcome startups have had success in raising capital. Health Recovery Solutions brought in $10 million last September, for its software to help reduce readmissions via remote patient monitoring and video visits. In the same month, Mednition, a machine-learning-powered decision support solution for emergency nurses, raised $10 million in a Series A round of funding.

Illustration: Dom Guzman