Guardant Health Secures Series D Financing to Expand the Reach of its Digital Sequencing™ Platform in Oncology

OrbiMed leads financing, which includes new and existing investors

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Jan 07, 2016, 07:30 ET

REDWOOD CITY, Calif., Jan. 7, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Guardant Health, the leader in non-invasive cancer genomic sequencing, today announced it has completed a first closing on the majority of a $100 million Series D capital raise, which includes equity financing and a term loan facility. The financing round is being led by healthcare-investment firm OrbiMed. This adds to the nearly $100 million already raised by the company. Existing Guardant Health investors Khosla Ventures, Sequoia Capital, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Pejman Mar, Formation 8, Heritage Group, and others participated in the investment.

The funding will help Guardant Health expand the technical and commercial lead of Guardant360®, the world's first comprehensive, non-invasive genomic sequencing test for cancer. Guardant360 helps physicians identify genomic alterations in patients with advanced cancers, without the cost, risk, or pain of invasive biopsies. This simple blood test aids in the selection of therapies tailored to the unique genomic makeup of each patient's cancer. Guardant Health will also use the funds to further expand its Digital Sequencing™ platform into new product lines that address the complete cancer-care continuum.

Helmy Eltoukhy, Guardant Health CEO, said, "Genomic technologies are on the cusp of fundamentally changing cancer care. As new targeted cancer therapies emerge, our platform becomes that much more powerful. Oncologists already recognize our value; increasingly, investors do as well. This new funding is a strong vote of confidence in our technology, science, commercial, and reimbursement operations from one of the most sophisticated healthcare investors in the world. We will use it to help as many patients as we can to proactively combat cancer."

"We are very pleased to partner with Guardant Health to help the company continue to advance the field of liquid biopsy in cancer care," said Tadd Wessel, a managing director at OrbiMed. Added Matthew Rizzo, also a managing director at OrbiMed, "We've been very impressed with the strength of their management team, their commitment to scientific validation in conjunction with top cancer centers and we look forward to working with Helmy and his team to help the company achieve its ultimate goal of transforming cancer care for the better."

About Guardant360: Guardant360 is the first CLIA/CAP-certified comprehensive next generation sequencing-based liquid biopsy test indicated for cancer genomics. The 70-gene blood test is used in advanced cancer patients with visceral solid tumor cancers or metastases, and interrogates all four types of genomic alterations. The test is used to prevent repeat invasive biopsies when cancer has progressed or recurred despite treatment, or when an initial biopsy is unobtainable or has insufficient tissue. It is the only ctDNA test that includes all guideline-recommended somatic genomic targets in a single test. Unlike hotspot tests, Guardant360 sequences complete exons so as not to miss uncommon or rare mutations. Based on the tumor genomic profile, clinicians receive a report of actionable genomic alterations and a list of FDA-approved treatments and clinical trials for which the patient could be eligible. Guardant360 has undergone extensive analytical and clinical validation and is supported by publications with leading cancer centers globally.

About Guardant Health Guardant Health is focused on developing breakthrough diagnostic technologies that can transform cancer from a silent killer into a manageable disease. Guardant Health was founded in 2012 by a team of serial entrepreneurs with expertise in next-generation sequencing, single-cell genomics and cancer diagnostics. The team is committed to improving patient health through technology that addresses long-standing unmet needs in oncology.

About OrbiMed OrbiMed is a leading investment firm dedicated exclusively to the healthcare sector, with over $16 billion in assets under management. OrbiMed invests globally across the spectrum of healthcare companies, from venture capital start-ups to large multinational companies utilizing a range of private equity funds, public equity funds, royalty/debt funds and other investment vehicles.

Media contact:

Mark de la Vina
Consort Partners for Guardant Health
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 415-282-4795

SOURCE Guardant Health