NuFund Venture Group Portfolio Company Cooler Heads Achieves Significant Milestones in Cancer Patient Care with Innovative Technology
June 17, 2024, San Diego, CA – NuFund Venture Group (NuFund) is proud to highlight the remarkable achievements of one of its portfolio companies, Cooler Heads. The med tech company has made significant strides in enhancing the quality of life for cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy through its cutting-edge scalp cooling technology.
Cooler Heads is transforming the market for scalp cooling, the therapy that allows chemotherapy patients to keep their hair, by making this important aspect of symptom management profitable for infusion centers. Their flagship product, Amma, is an FDA-cleared, patient-administered device that doesn’t add to nursing workloads or change patient scheduling, which have been primary barriers to the broad adoption of scalp cooling. By making scalp cooling profitable for infusion centers, the young company is showing that they can dramatically expand access to this treatment.
1 in 12 chemotherapy patients refuse chemotherapy due to concerns about hair loss and >85% of chemotherapy patients are moderately to extremely concerned about hair loss. Rates of concern about hair loss are similar for both male and female patients because going bald is a public announcement that an individual is sick.
While this therapy is now in the clinical recommendations of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network and the American Society of Clinical Oncology, it has not been widely adopted because other solutions either double the amount of time a patient is in an infusion chair, preventing other patients from being treated, or they are too time intensive for nurses. This portable unit is revolutionizing the way patients manage hair loss during cancer treatment, making cold cap therapy accessible to a wider audience.
Key Achievements and Milestones:
- Revenue Growth and Market Expansion: Over 70% of Cooler Heads’ health system accounts have not offered scalp cooling until Amma changed the financial incentives around this treatment.
- Increased Patient Enrollment: As of June 1, 2024 Cooler Heads surpassed the total number of patients in the entirety of 2023 due to their rapidly expanding customer base.
- High Reorder Rates: Notably, 68% of all cap system sales are from reorders, indicating high satisfaction and continued use among existing customers. This statistic underscores the product’s reliability, consistency, and the strong relationships Cooler Heads is building with its clients.
- Published Data: At the American Society of Clinical Oncology conference earlier this month, Providence Health presented a poster on an observational study of Amma demonstrating that Amma has outcomes consistent to one of their competitors and superior to the other. In addition, 100% of patients enrolled would recommend Amma to other patients.
- Series A Funding and Future Growth: Cooler Heads is in the process of raising a Series A, with over a third already soft circled. This funding will get them to over $10M in ARR and the next version of Amma with significant enhancements to improve the patient experience, usability, and efficacy.
“NuFund has been an incredible partner,” said Kate Dilligan, CEO of Cooler Heads. “Their support has been not only financial but also access to their hands-on team who have been really helpful as we continue to enter new phases of growth. In addition, they have a fantastic reputation which has brought in other investors. We are proud, especially as a San Diego based company, to have them on our cap table.”
Cooler Heads recently achieved a significant milestone with the acceptance of a poster presentation at the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) meeting. The poster, based on an observational study conducted by Providence, revealed that 100% of the 14 patients enrolled would recommend Amma to other chemotherapy patients. This recognition at a prestigious medical society meeting underscores Amma’s clinical value and importance to improving chemotherapy patients’ quality of life.
“Cooler Heads is setting a new standard for scalp cooling. Their technology is not only therapeutically effective but changes the business case for scalp cooling for infusion centers,” said Sumeet Vadera MD, the Cooler Heads lead at NuFund Venture Group.
“NuFund is proud to support Cooler Heads as they continue to innovate and expand their reach. The milestones they have achieved so far are a testament to their dedication and the transformative impact of their technology,” he added.
Cooler Heads’ rapidly growing market traction demonstrates that there needed to be a new business and use case to make scalp cooling the standard of care at infusion centers treating chemotherapy patients. Cooler Heads is on the precipice of changing the perception of what it means to be a cancer patient.
About NuFund Venture Group
NuFund Venture Group represents a new wave of angel investors, pioneering a novel fund model focused on emerging technology leaders. NuFund was formerly known as Tech Coast Angels – San Diego (TCA-SD), and the organization is one of the largest, most active, and most successful early-stage investor groups over the past 20+ years. We continually strive to foster a culture that is friendly, innovative, engaging, rewarding, and fun for all stakeholders. For more information, please visit http://www.nufund.comAbout Cooler Heads
Cooler Heads is a pioneering med tech company using technology to build the evidence based products, content, and services that cancer patients need to manage the daunting side effects of treatment. Founded by Kate Dilligan, a breast cancer survivor and Stanford MBA, Cooler Heads has launched their flagship product, Amma, to help make it profitable for infusion centers to offer scalp cooling, a therapy that lets chemotherapy patients keep their hair. Cooler Heads is committed to innovation, patient care, and expanding access to life-changing technology. For more information, visit Cooler Heads. https://www.coolerheads.com/###