US-based urology treatment developer Taris Biomedical has secured $25m in a series B round backed by pharmaceutical firm Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMS).
Venture capital fund Yonghua Capital led the round, which also featured Flagship Pioneering, Polaris Partners, RA Capital Management and Norma Investments.
Founded in 2008, Taris Biomedical is developing non-invasive treatments for urological conditions such as bladder cancer. Its aim is to facilitate the steady release of drugs in the bladder over periods of weeks or months.
The funds will be used to progress Taris’s assets through the clinical testing phase. Taris and BMS have agreed to jointly conduct research into combining Taris’s lead asset, TAR-200, with BMS’s Opdivo cancer drug to target muscle-invasive bladder cancer.
Taris had secured $32m in a Flagship Pioneering-led round in 2015 that included Polaris Partners and RA Capital, the former two having backed the company since it was founded.
Third Rock Ventures led an $18.4m round for the company featuring Flagship Ventures, Flybridge Capital Partners and Polaris Venture Partners that closed in 2013. Taris had raised $7.4m in equity financing in 2008 and $5m the following year, according to regulatory filings.