US-based health informatics provider M2Gen has raised $75m in funding from mass media and healthcare conglomerate Hearst, according to the Tampa Bay Times.
M2Gen was set up in 2006 by treatment and research institute Moffitt Cancer Center. It is creating a large-scale genetic database that tracks patients throughout their lifetime, making the information accessible to researchers and helping them identify potential new treatments.
Apart from accelerating the drug discovery process, the Total Cancer Care platform can also be used to match patients with the most promising clinical trials for their individual health conditions.
Hearst’s investment will enable M2Gen to further expand its database, and to structure the data in a way that will facilitate more clinical discoveries in future.
M2Gen previously raised funding from Moffitt and Ohio State University, which partnered the company in 2014, though further details of their investments could not be ascertained.
Steven Swartz, president and chief executive of Hearst, said: “Hearst is committed to investing in companies and solutions whose information and analytics can improve and advance healthcare.
“M2Gen is making enormous strides in advancing cancer research through its pioneering work, and we are proud to join this mission.”