Scanwell Health Secures $3.5M Seed Funding to Advance At-Home UTI Testing and Expand Diagnostic Capabilities

On November 7, 2019, VCBeat (WeChat ID: vcbeat) learned that Scanwell Health, a U.S. developer of urine testing systems, announced the completion of a $3.5 million seed funding round. The round was jointly invested by investors including Founder Fund, Mayfield Fund, DCM, Version One, Y Combinator, and Liquid 2 Ventures.

This round of financing will be used to support Scanwell Health in hiring more researchers and initiating the development of new diagnostic methods for urinary tract infections.

In addition, Scanwell Health announced that it will launch nationwide smartphone-based urinary tract infection testing and treatment services through a partnership with Lemonaid Health.

Scanwell Health, a healthcare company headquartered in Los Angeles, California, is dedicated to making healthcare services more convenient and accessible. The company announced that its smartphone-based testing and treatment service for urinary and reproductive tract infections is now available in all 50 U.S. states.

Scanwell’s UTI test is the only FDA-cleared over-the-counter urine testing app in the United States. Through its partnership with the telehealth company Lemonaid Health, patients across the country can use Scanwell’s test and app to diagnose urinary tract infections (UTIs) and then quickly, safely, and affordably receive online treatment from Lemonaid physicians or nurse practitioners based on the diagnosis.

When using the Scanwell test kit and the iOS- or Android-based Scanwell app, individuals can quickly and accurately determine whether their urine contains high levels of leukocytes and nitrites. The presence of elevated leukocyte and nitrite concentrations in the tested urine sample may indicate a urinary tract infection (UTI). The entire testing process with Scanwell takes only two minutes, offering diagnostic accuracy comparable to that of clinical urinalysis performed in a clinic setting. If users experience UTI symptoms, they can directly connect online with Lemonaid’s physicians and nurse practitioners. If necessary, these clinicians can prescribe antibiotics. Scanwell tests are available on its official portal website at $15 per purchase, which includes three tests.

Scanwell has also partnered with Kaiser Permanente and the Chronic Renal Insufficiency Cohort (CRIC) study to improve screening and monitoring for chronic kidney disease (CKD). Through this collaboration, Scanwell leverages its urine analysis technology to screen participants’ urine for excessive protein levels. This screening helps identify CKD at an earlier stage, enabling individuals to make timely lifestyle adjustments to prevent disease progression.

Stephen Chen, Founder and CEO of Scanwell Health, stated, “This incredible funding round, along with the nationwide launch of our tests and app, represents an exciting milestone that will help us realize our vision of providing reliable and convenient at-home testing to millions of people. Our partnership with Lemonaid is just the beginning; we are preparing to roll out additional diagnostic tests that have the potential to transform how we diagnose and treat infections, as well as monitor chronic diseases. We look forward to collaborating with other partners to bring these tests to people across the country.”

Founders Fund, established in 2005, is a venture capital firm headquartered in San Francisco, California. The firm focuses on seed-stage, early-stage, mid-stage, growth-stage, and late-stage investments, with a preference for science and engineering companies, including those in consumer internet, biotechnology, aerospace and transportation, energy, fintech, artificial intelligence, robotics, and healthcare.

Mayfield Fund is one of the world’s top venture capital firms, primarily providing entrepreneurs with experience, resources, management teams, and business guidance to help them transform new ideas and technologies into successful commercial ventures. Mayfield has invested in more than 300 information technology and healthcare companies, whose combined market value exceeds $100 billion.

(Compiled by Wang Fang)