Financing will support the growth of an integrated specialty pharmaceutical company
CAMBRIDGE, Mass.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Shorla Oncology (‘Shorla’), a U.S.-Ireland specialty pharmaceutical company, today announced that it has raised $35 million in Series B funding, led by Kurma Partners’ Growth Opportunities Fund, with participation from existing investors Seroba Life Sciences and Irish, U.S. and Canadian based family offices and Enterprise Ireland. The funding will enable Shorla to accelerate the growth of its oncology portfolio by advancing its pipeline, bringing therapies to market that will address drug shortages, and improving the preparation and application of oncology medication(1).
“We are thrilled to announce the successful conclusion of our Series B funding round,” stated Sharon Cunningham, chief executive officer of Shorla Oncology. “The investment will underpin the advancement and commercialization of our oncology drugs ensuring we continue to deliver on our mission of bringing promising treatments to patients around the globe.”
Shorla specializes in the development of oncology treatments, with a focus on orphan and pediatric cancers. Backed by a dedicated team of scientists and clinicians, the company is advancing a differentiated portfolio of oncology treatments aimed at addressing significant gaps in patient care. Shorla recently announced the FDA approval and market launch of Nelarabine Injection, marking its first approval in the US. Shorla aims to continuously bring products to market with a significant and growing portfolio of late-stage assets. These products are improving efficiencies by providing more convenient formulations to clinicians and enabling easier application for patients(2).
“Shorla’s recent FDA approval is a testament to its capabilities for bringing differentiated formulations of life-changing medications to the market,” commented Daniel Parera, M.D., Partner, Kurma Partners. “We are excited to support Shorla’s growth as an integrated Specialty Pharma company to address shortcomings in patient care and improve outcomes. In particular, the team has shown impressive agility in identifying unmet needs and in operational execution. This matches very well with our focus and expertise as a Growth fund to support the scale-up of emerging champions of the European Healthcare and Life Science ecosystem.”
References:
(1) NIOSH [2023]. Managing hazardous drug exposures: information for healthcare settings. By Hodson L et al. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, CDC, NIOSH
(2) Watson CJ et al. Pharmaceutical Compounding: a History, Regulatory Overview, and Systematic Review of Compounding Errors. J Med Toxicol. 2021 Apr;17(2):197-217
About Shorla Oncology
Established in 2018 by Sharon Cunningham and Orlaith Ryan, Shorla Oncology is a privately held, Ireland- and US-based pharmaceutical company with an advanced pipeline of innovative oncology drugs for orphan and pediatric cancers. The company concentrates on indications where existing treatments are limited, in shortage or the drug applications are inadequate for the target population. Shorla’s growing portfolio brings accessible, affordable and life-saving treatments to patients, delivering a major contribution to patient care.
About Kurma Partners
Kurma Partners is a key European Venture Capital firm specialized in healthcare, with more than €700 million under management, with three dedicated franchises: “Kurma Biofund” focused on venture investments in therapeutics (current active fund KBIII), “Kurma Diagnostics” focused on venture investments in diagnostics and digital health (current active fund Kurma Dx2) and its recently launched first “Growth Opportunities Fund” focused on late-stage growth investments in therapeutics, diagnostics, digital health and medtech with six investments to date including Shorla. Kurma Partners is part of the Eurazeo Group.
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