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Flomics presents a novel liquid biopsy blood test for the early detection of multiple types of cancer. Our non-invasive test analyzes cell-free RNA expression patterns in blood, identifying cancer biomarkers with Next Generation Sequencing (NGS), powerful bioinformatics, and AI, aiding early-stage diagnosis. Targeting at-risk populations, we have performed pilot studies on the early detection of colon and lung cancer and are expanding to 3 other indications: breast, prostate, pancreas. 

Cancer early detection revolution is on the way!

 

Completed 0 one day ago
344 investors
Investment achieved
798.502€
Target
600.000€
Invested
133.1%
133.1% INVESTED
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This campaign was live:
From: 18 June 2024
Until: 12 July 2024
Maturity

Prototype/preclinical

Premoney valuation

9.000.000

Estimated exit

2028

Sector

Diagnosis

Equity offered

6.3%

Minimum investment

500

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Overview: Flomics

Valuation 9.000.000
Estimated return x30
% Offered 6.3%
Estimated exit 2028
The company

Flomics Biotech is revolutionizing the early detection of cancer through an innovative liquid biopsy test, unleashing the power of cell-free RNA (cfRNA) molecules that are living snapshots of what is happening in our body in a specific moment. This transformative approach leverages a standard blood draw to screen asymptomatic individuals for complex diseases such as cancer, focusing especially on high-risk groups such as  those over 50, smokers, and individuals with a family history of cancer. This proactive screening is vital, as cancer remains the second leading cause of death globally, primarily due to the difficulties in detecting it early when treatment options are most effective.

Problem and Flomics solution:

Current cancer detection methods fall short, as 90% of cancers lack effective early detection tests and are usually only identified when symptomatic and in advanced stages. Flomics addresses this problem with a multi-cancer blood test, merging Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS) and sophisticated bioinformatics that applies AI to identify RNA biomarker signatures in our blood. This will facilitate early and more reliable cancer diagnoses and therefore  improve patient outcomes significantly.

Flomics Solution

Our technology hinges on the dynamic nature of cfRNA molecules produced by cells in response to external stimuli such as complex diseases. These molecules, either free-floating or encapsulated within vesicles, circulate in the blood, providing a real-time snapshot of cellular health. Flomics has developed optimized protocols and sophisticated algorithms, managed by our cloud platform, Stratus®, to survey these molecules efficiently. Our AI-driven approach allows for the detection of abnormal genomic patterns and offers clear clinical interpretations.

RNA

We have validated the use of our technology in the detection of cancer with nearly perfect accuracy in pilot studies conducted in collaboration with prestigious medical institutions in Spain and Europe. We are currently expanding these studies and conducting further validations with a larger cohort of over 1300 donors, targeting the early detection of colon, lung, breast, prostate and pancreatic cancer. We also have an ongoing pilot study on the early detection of one type of blood cancer (multiple myeloma).

Market Opportunity and Competition:

The market potential for cancer diagnostics is immense, with the sector valued at $132 billion and growing. Liquid biopsy, a small yet rapidly expanding segment, is projected to reach $14 billion by 2030. Flomics is poised to capture a significant share of this market by offering a solution that not only adds clinical value but also aligns with the latest advances in cancer research and diagnostics.

Competitively, Flomics stands out by focusing on cfRNA instead of traditional DNA-based tests. This not only offers insights into the immediate state of cells but also aids in pinpointing the tissue origin of the cancer, a significant advantage over other methods. Our proprietary platform, Stratus®, enhances our competitive edge, integrating biological insights with cutting-edge bioinformatics to revolutionize cancer diagnostics.

Business Model and Team:

Our business model caters to both direct and indirect sales channels, targeting hospitals and clinics directly or through partnerships with local laboratories. This dual approach ensures wide market penetration and supports scalability and international growth.

The Flomics team is led by a group of seasoned experts in genomics, bioinformatics, and molecular biology, complemented by a stellar advisory board with deep expertise in RNA research and oncology. As we move toward market entry in 2027 with our initial early detection kit for the early detection of colon cancer, our goal is to expand to a multicancer five-cancer screening kit in the following years, post-clinical certification.

«I fully support Flomics and their innovative liquid biopsy technology based on RNA biomarkers. Their innovative approach in early cancer detection, led by a visionary team, promises to revolutionize diagnostics and significantly improve patient outcomes.»

Javier Rivela
Pangaea Oncology

Why is Capital Cell investing in this company?

Early cancer detection lacks effective tests, leading to diagnosis at advanced stages. This delay not only increases healthcare costs but also raises the mortality rate by nearly 300%, resulting in an estimated additional expenditure of $85 billion in the healthcare sector.

Current diagnostic methods are often invasive, such as colonoscopies for colorectal cancer, or uncomfortable and based on X-rays, like mammograms for breast cancer. Although effective, these tests are costly and difficult to use as screening tools due to patient discomfort.

Flomics offers an innovative solution for early cancer detection through a liquid biopsy test based on the evaluation of free RNA molecules (cfRNA). This method uses a multi-cancer blood test that combines next-generation sequencing and bioinformatics analysis with artificial intelligence to identify RNA biomarker signatures in the blood, achieving 90% accuracy in early detection of colon cancer in initial trials.

Minimum investment: 500
Type of exit expected: Sale of the Company
Drag-along rights
Tag-along rights
Tax deductions
Main risks

Despite having superior screening parameters, Flomics' success will depend on market access and clinical trials to establish itself in the market and become the new "gold standard" for various types of cancer.

Flomics must demonstrate that its diagnostics not only surpass current standards at the regulatory level but also prove to be more efficient for the healthcare system.

More information

Flomics blood test detects early-stage cancer with high accuracy (>90%), enabling timely treatments that save lives.

Flomics’ technology isolates stable cfRNA, unlocking precise cancer diagnostics previously unachievable in early stages

Flomics has ongoing validation studies on the early detection of 5 types of cancer: colon, lung, prostate, breast and pancreas.

For Spain alone, our technology has the potential to save 15k+ lives and €700M every year, considering the early detection of the 5-types of cancer in study

Our experts say

The technique in use is sound, and the team, both internal and advisory, has the potential to pivot and redirect from a technical standpoint. The use of mRNAs as oncobiomarkers, although not 100% in the clinics, has a very promising outlook and obvious biological support.

Rita Vassena

CEO at Fecundis

I believe that liquid biopsy is a powerful tool in personalized medicine and the idea of the team at Flomics to develop a screening solution for multiple cancers is highly innovative.

Marta Marszalek

Clinical Research Manager at Milestone Pharmaceuticals

Early detection of various types of cancer can be extremely beneficial, both in terms of patient survival and health care costs.

Kadri Reis

Researcher | Analyst

The final rating

APPROVED: This company has successfully passed a rigorous legal and financial analysis.

Approved by
The BioExpert Network is an independent and exclusive network of experts in the life science industry and investment. Only proposals that receive positive evaluations in innovation, science, finance... make it successfully through to the funding campaign stage of Capital Cell.
Team
75%
Science
73%
Innovation
73%
Business
73%
Approved by
Alira Health is an international consultancy that provides a suite of integrated services designed to help companies in the healthcare and life sciences sectors.
Market access
75%
Regulatory
79%
Approved by
Elion is an intellectual property (IP) agency, which helps biotech and medtech start-ups with their protection strategies, patent drafting and prosecution, as well as freedom-to-operate studies.
Intellectual Property
69%

The project

Flomics is developing a liquid biopsy test that can detect cancer even before the first symptoms appear, everything out of a blood sample.

Our innovation is built on top of more than 50 combined years of work in the genomics field that gave us the competitive advantage and vision to bring cell-free RNA sequencing to cancer detection. It begins at the laboratory level, where we have invested significant resources to optimize the process of manipulation and quantification of RNA by Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS) at exceptional levels of quantity and quality. This is the foundation stone of our technology since RNA is a very fragile molecule. With high quality data we trained a machine learning algorithm (Flomics AI classifier) to learn features from RNA and use it to classify samples. We safeguard these proprietary protocols as trade secrets. Below, we provide a summary of our comprehensive sample preparation protocol, alongside a comparative analysis illustrating the evolution of Flomics’ RNA quality where our results stand out in quality and variability across samples.

Figure 1. Summary of Flomics workflow (see publication) and resulting RNA data quality (%reads in exons).

To demonstrate its applicability in cancer detection, we have conducted several pilot studies analyzing the cell-free RNA pool of healthy donors and cancer patients from various hospitals (Hospital Clínic de Barcelona and others). Flomics AI classifier uses RNA features to distinguish healthy and cancer phenotypes, achieving over 90% accuracy in Colon cancer detection, as an example (European patent pending). This biomarker set was further validated using external data confirming similar levels of accuracy. A summary of this pivotal study is provided below:

Figure 2. F1 Score, sensitivity and specificity calculation using Flomics AI classifier. This study was performed with an external cohort of 54 CRC and 46 controls

We are currently finishing a wider validation study with 5 different types of cancers and approximately 1300 samples total, where we expect to yield similar results in terms of sensitivity, specificity and accuracy.

Our team

Flomics Biotech was founded in 2018 by João Curado (CEO), and bolstered by the expertise of André Guedes (COO). The founding team is complemented by esteemed advisors Esther Lizano, Luis Korrodi, and Prof. Roderic Guigó. The company structure includes departments led by skilled heads: Genomics (Phil Sanders, PhD), Bioinformatics (Julien Lagarde, PhD), IT (André Lopes, MSc), Contract Research Services (Lluc Cabus, PhD), and People, Legal and Accounting (Cristina Erena). Flomics is further supported by a scientific and medical advisory board featuring experts like Roderic Guigó and Albert Abad, and a business advisory board including Apple ex-executive Gennaro Bifulco. The company currently employs 18 full-time staff members.

Management team

João Curado, PhD , CEO
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João Curado, PhD, is the co-founder and CEO of Flomics Biotech, a trailblazer in RNA research and non-invasive cancer diagnostics through liquid biopsy technologies. An esteemed genomics and bioinformatics scholar, João earned his PhD from the Center for Genomic Regulation (CRG) in Barcelona and the University of Porto, mentored by Prof. Roderic Guigó. His entrepreneurial journey includes founding the Innovation Forum Barcelona to merge scientific innovation with business. In 2023, João also founded Cosymbio Labs, further expanding his impact on biotech entrepreneurship. João's expertise spans genomics, bioinformatics, and business development, making him a key figure in transforming early cancer detection and treatment.

André Guedes, PhD , COO
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André Guedes, PhD, is the COO and a co-founder of Flomics Biotech, marking his fifth tech startup venture. With a PhD in Physics from the Technical University of Lisbon and enriched by post-doctoral research at the University of California, André brings a wealth of experience in tech and biotech innovation. His career highlights include founding Picosense and Chirp Microsystems in San Francisco, with Chirp later being acquired by TDK in 2018. At Flomics, he applies his profound expertise in innovation, startup management, and technology transfer to enhance operational efficiencies and drive strategic growth. André has also co-authored over 30 scientific articles and holds 10 patents, underscoring his contributions to scientific and technological advancement. More recently, he extended his entrepreneurial spirit to co-found Cosymbio Labs in 2023, further demonstrating his commitment to impacting the biotech landscape.

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Key team members

Julien Lagarde, PhD
Head of Bioinformatics
Phil Sanders, PhD
Head of Genomics
Alexandros Nikolaou, PhD
Head of Projects & Grants
Lluc Cabus, PhD
Head of Contract Research Services
Cristina Erena
Head of People, Legal & Accounting

Advisors

Roderic Guigó
Advisor - Science
Tomàs Marques
Advisor - Science
Esther Lizano
Co-founder & Advisor
Christian Beck
Advisor - Business
Gennaro Bifulco
Advisor - Business
Luis Korrodi
Co-founder & Advisor
Albert Abad
Advisor - Medical

The problem

Cancer, the second leading cause of death globally, is most deadly due to its late detection. Currently, effective early detection tests are absent for 90% of cancers, leading to diagnoses in advanced stages when treatment options are limited and less effective. The lack of comprehensive, non-invasive detection methods exacerbates the problem, resulting in significantly lower survival rates and higher treatment costs, emphasizing an urgent need for improved diagnostic technologies in the market.

The solution

Flomics Biotech offers a cutting-edge solution to the urgent problem of late cancer detection. Our liquid biopsy technology utilizes circulating cell-free RNA (cfRNA) to detect early indicators of cancer through a simple blood test. By employing advanced bioinformatics and artificial intelligence, our method identifies unique cfRNA signatures that indicate the presence and type of cancer, even in its earliest stages. This non-invasive, AI-enhanced screening enables the detection of multiple cancer types simultaneously, significantly improving early diagnosis and potentially transforming patient outcomes

Our differentiation

Flomics distinguishes itself in the crowded field of cancer diagnostics with its innovative use of circulating cfRNA as opposed to the commonly used cfDNA. CfRNA offers a richer source of biomarkers, providing stronger signals and more detailed information about the presence and type of cancer. Recognizing the challenges associated with RNA’s rapid biological degradation, Flomics has developed proprietary protocols that ensure its high-quality extraction and preservation. This breakthrough enables us to work with high quality RNA and utilize advanced bioinformatics to identify specific biomarkers, i.e. a set of specific genes, for specific types of cancers, which we protect through patents. Our unique focus on cfRNA, combined with our robust methodologies, positions Flomics as a leader in precise and early cancer detection, fundamentally changing the landscape of cancer diagnostics.