Strand Diagnostics to receive $30 million in funding from NantWorks

Strand Diagnostics, LLC, maker of the know error® system, and NantWorks, LLC announced that they have entered into an agreement whereby Strand will receive up to $30 million in funding from NantWorks, LLC over the next 3 years. The money will be used to accelerate the company's growth, scale its operations infrastructure, and expand sales and marketing efforts.

“Their products fit directly into our vision of quantitative medicine and next-generation personalized medicine.”

"This investment is a very important next step for the growth of our business," said Strand Diagnostics President, Ken Cerney. "NantWorks and Dr. Soon-Shiong provide additional resources, experience, and relationships that will help to grow our platform more quickly."

Co-founder Dr. Peter Knapp added, "We are excited to have this relationship with NantWorks as DNA Specimen Provenance Assignment - or DSPA testing - increasingly becomes the standard of care for the diagnosis of cancer and other conditions. DSPA testing completes the cancer diagnostic testing cycle to provide patients a complete and accurate diagnosis, allowing physicians to proceed with the best treatment for the appropriate patient."

Launched in 2009, the know error® system delivers a new standard of patient safety and accuracy to the diagnostic testing cycle. Using bar coding, forensic principles, and DNA matching, the know error® system ensures that surgical biopsy samples being evaluated belong exclusively to the patient being diagnosed. Less than three years after the company's launch, hundreds of physicians in a variety of specialties have incorporated the know error® system as their standard for patient care. Currently, the most popular offerings are the know error® systems for breast biopsy and prostate biopsy.

"The era of quantitative genomic medicine is upon us. Clinical decision support utilizing gene and bioinformatics will transform healthcare as we know it today. The Know Error founding team has laid the groundwork for an innovative system that improves patient safety and diagnostic accuracy," said NantWorks Chairman and CEO, Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong. "Their products fit directly into our vision of quantitative medicine and next-generation personalized medicine."

This announcement marks NantWork's second healthcare investment in Indiana in just two months, providing additional opportunities for Indiana's growing life sciences industry.

"With the strength of our life sciences industry and a first-class work force, it's no surprise that NantWorks has chosen Indiana as the home for another investment," said Governor Mitch Daniels. "With its established executive leadership and commitment to healthcare innovation, NantWorks has all the right ingredients to flourish in the Hoosier State."