Our Innovation Analysts recently looked into emerging technologies and up-and-coming startups working on solutions for the healthcare sector. As there is a large number of startups working on a wide variety of solutions, we want to share our insights with you. This time, we are taking a look at 5 promising biopsy startups.
Heat Map: 5 Top Biopsy Startups
Using our StartUs Insights Discovery Platform, covering 1.379.000+ startups & scaleups globally, we looked at innovation in the field of healthcare. For this research, we identified 197 relevant solutions and picked 5 to showcase below. These companies were chosen based on a data-driven startup scouting approach, taking into account factors such as location, founding year, and relevance of technology, among others. Depending on your specific criteria, the top picks might look entirely different.
The Global Startup Heat Map below highlights 5 startups & scaleups developing biopsy solutions. Moreover, the Heat Map reveals regions that observe a high startup activity and illustrates the geographic distribution of all 197 companies we analyzed for this specific topic.
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EndoCore – Percutaneous Needle Biopsy (PNB)
Advancements in medical devices are transforming endoscopy to provide improved visibility into patients’ bodies. To also enhance the efficiency of biopsies, startups are pushing innovations in the field of endoscope cameras and their materials. For instance, cameras make percutaneous biopsies less expensive and invasive than other surgical procedures.
Irish startup EndoCore develops a proprietary percutaneous biopsy technology. The startup’s solution enables medical professionals to continuously draw unbroken tissue from patients using ultrasound-guided endoscopic procedures. To achieve this, a flexible needle device that helps obtain biopsies from the targeted regions in the gastrointestinal tract is used.
BrainSpec – Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy (MRS)
Understanding the size and position of tumors enables doctors to create the best possible plan of action for biopsies. Brain tumors require an especially precise plan of action for biopsies due to the neural complexities involved. Technological advancements in magnetic resonance spectroscopy allow medical professionals to view tumors in detail, enhance the planning for biopsies and thereby decrease the risk of adverse effects.
The US-based startup BrainSpec provides a software package that combines processing technology with an intuitive and accessible interface to leverage magnetic resonance spectroscopy. The procedure is safe, non-invasive, radiation-free, and works with all magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanners. This solution enables medical professionals to obtain better images, observe tissue metabolism, and measure the various biochemicals in the brain.
DEBN – Prostate Biopsy
Ex-vivo biopsies support oncologists to identify prostate cancer in its early stages, therefore improving patients’ outlook. However, infectious complications are a common side-effect of prostate biopsies. These include urinary tract infections, prostatitis, and even severe septic complications. Through advancing medical imaging such as ultrasound-guided biopsy imaging, startups are able to develop solutions that improve the efficacy and safety of biopsies.
Polish startup DEBN manufactures a proprietary, patent-pending, and drug-eluting biopsy needle for prostate biopsies. The startup’s medical device consists of a polymer-coated biopsy needle and an anesthesia needle that releases the medication directly to the prostate during the procedure. Additionally, the startup’s solution handles the co-administration of antibiotics if needed.
Aspire Medical Innovation – Bone Marrow Aspiration
Easy accessibility, aspiration, biopsy, and culture of the bone marrow play a major role in the assessment of patients suffering from rare genetic diseases such as anemia and sickle-cell disease. Advancements in stem cell therapy enable pharmaceutical manufacturers to accelerate drug discovery and development. Startups also leverage these advances to develop bone marrow aspiration solutions to treat various genetic irregularities.
German startup Aspire Medical Innovation builds Marrow Cellution, a system to maximize stem cell recovery and to reduce the chances of peripheral blood contamination. The startup’s solution draws high concentrations of stem cells that are ready to use within 10 minutes of extraction. This process is minimally invasive, unlike traditional bone marrow aspiration techniques, and reduces patient trauma as well as morbidity.
Flomics – Cell-Free Nucleic Acid
The detection of circulating tumor ribonucleic acid (ctRNA) in the bloodstream is an early hint of cancerous tumors as they usually stem from an existing tumor. Liquid biopsies are a novel method for detecting tumors which improves the chances of successful cancer treatment. Technological advancements, such as machine learning algorithms, allow startups to further develop advanced screening solutions such as liquid biopsies and other solutions that identify disease biomarkers from blood panels.
Spanish startup Flomics develops novel blood-based diagnostic tools for a variety of complex diseases. The startup uses a proprietary sequencing technology to analyze circulating long ribonucleic acid (RNA) present in blood samples to accurately identify changes in their patterns. Using deep learning algorithms, the startup enables medical professionals to identify RNA changes associated with disease states in a faster, cheaper, and non-invasive way.
What About The Other 192 Solutions?
While we believe data is key to creating insights it can be easy to be overwhelmed by it. Our ambition is to create a comprehensive overview and provide actionable innovation intelligence and enable you to achieve your goals faster. The 5 biopsy solutions showcased above are promising examples out of 197 we analyzed for this article. To identify the most relevant solutions based on your specific criteria, get in touch.
