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

The process of getting screened for cervical cancer is quite intimidating. It’s a once-a-year, sometimes life-changing treatment that involves the bright lights of a doctor’s office and an uncomfortable insertion that always seems to last too long.

No wonder Kara Egan and Dr. Abnesh Thakur saw the potential to make the procedure more comfortable for women. The two came together in 2020 and launched Teal HeathA company wants to share resources about women’s health and develop products so that women can perform cervical cancer screening at home. It will be a first-of-its-kind product and is awaiting FDA approval

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

Investors seem enthusiastic about the idea. Today, Teal Health announced a $10 million seed round led by Emerson Collective and Pioneer, bringing its total funding to $23 million. Other investors in the round include Serena Ventures and Chelsea Clinton.

“Cervical cancer screening is the most important and often the entry point in women’s health relationships,” Egan, co-founder and CEO, told TechCrunch. “Currently more than 1 in 4 women are behind on this life-saving screening.”

Pending FDA approval, Till Health will release its Till Wand for home use. A person will be able to request a collection kit at home and the company will provide a telehealth visit. Once a person receives the kit, they collect their vaginal sample using a teal wand, seal the sample and send it to a teal. – Approved labs. “Til support is available to make sure we answer any questions you have along the way,” says Egan.

Cervical cancer used to be one of the most common cancer deaths for women, although more prevention and screening has helped reduce it. According to the American Cancer Society. These declines have been seen to stabilize over the past few years as it is believed that more women avoid prevention and screening measures.

“Women want to have their health screenings, but they’re balancing a lot,” Egan says. This white space in the market came at a good time—backing interest Women’s Health Company has increased every year.

In fact, Egan calls his fundraising process “robust.” He met his major investors through his professional network, especially since he was an investor himself.

Teal Health will use the fresh capital to launch its Teal Wand.

“This funding will help further enhance our robust telehealth platform, patient portal, educational resources and customer support tools, as well as help grow our team of exceptional medical providers,” said Egan. “We are focused on our plans to scale across the US”

There are many women’s health organizations in the area, but not necessarily looking to provide a home device for cervical cancer. Teal’s main competition is standard OBGYNs, but the company hopes that providing a convenient option — meaning no need to schedule an appointment and visit a physician in person — will attract more customers to the product.

“Standard care is no longer working for women, and we’re seeing it through declining screening rates and rising rates of 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.”