Optical imaging company secures £600,000
Optical imaging company Michelson Diagnostics has secured £600,000 of early stage funding from London Seed Capital (LSC) and Catapult Venture Managers. The funding will enable further development of its imaging technology and in-vivo trials in a clinical environment.
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London Seed Capital (LSC) is a £4.8m co-investment fund that co-invests £50,000 to £100,000 alongside business angels in London and the south of England. An essential ingredient of the investment model that LSC follows includes a cornerstone business angel investor co-investing as part of the business angel syndicate with relevant skills that will be joining the company’s board post-completion.
Founded in 2006 and based in south-east London, UK, Michelson Diagnostics develops and supplies optical coherence tomography medical imaging equipment. Its optical probe technology offers sub-surface images for cancer surgery guidance, surveillance and diagnostic applications.
Michelson Diagnostics’ next generation imaging technology addresses the key need for clinicians to see – during an operation and in real time – the location and extent of a tumour for a range of cancer types. This enables faster, more accurate cancer surgery when compared with the slow, painstaking process of taking multiple samples of tissue for analysis.
Growing market for medical diagnosis and treatment
Michelson Diagnostics has the potential to significantly impact a growing market for diagnosis, treatment and post-operative monitoring of early stage cancers. Within a clinical setting the company’s technology allows surgeons to see the size and location of a tumour in real-time.
This allows them to assess tumour margin and spread giving better surgical outcomes and less chance of readmission. Ex-vivo clinical testing at University College London and Gloucestershire Royal Hospital has already demonstrated the huge potential of this new technology.
Robert Desborough, investment manager at London Seed Capital, commented, “Medical Device technologies have the ability to significantly impact and extend the lives of patients worldwide. We are delighted to be involved with Jon Holmes and his team at Michelson Diagnostics as they address a major clinical problem with truly innovative technology, enabling the potential to save hundreds of thousands of lives globally.”
CEO Jon Holmes said, “This funding will enable the company to continue the development of our optical coherent tomography technology and demonstrate its potential to solve significant unmet medical needs in multi-billion pound markets worldwide. We are tremendously excited by the confidence shown in Michelson Diagnostics by our new investors, London Seed Capital, London Business Angels and Catapult Venture Managers.”
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