Mirabilis Medica, a three-year old startup based in Bothell, WA, has closed a $10.5 million extension to the Series A financing it completed a year ago. The funding — led by Arboretum Ventures of Ann Arbor, MI, and participated in by Split Rock Partners, Dow Venture Capital, and an individual investor — will be used to continue development of Mirabilis’ non-invasive treatment for uterine fibroids.
The company’s image-guided High Intensity Focused Ultrasound (HIFU) system is designed to destroy pathological tissue deep inside the body without damage to intervening tissue, and to monitor effects with real-time ultrasound imaging. The HIFU system is not first-in-class, but Mirabilis is well poised given the groundwork already laid in this area by competitors like InSightec and Biosphere.
Mirabilis believes its technology could address a variety of gynecological conditions but for now is targeting uterine fibroids, which cause cramps and bleeding in 25% of women of reproductive age (an estimated 16 million women in the U.S. alone).
Fibroids account for one third of the 600,000 hysterectomies that take place in the U.S. each year; annual spending on fibroids is estimated at $3.5 billion. Stats show that one-in-three women have a hysterectomy by age 60, yet most fibroid sufferers – unwilling to undergo such a drastic procedure – remain untreated.
Mirabilis’ Series A round was originally for $4 million and led by Charter Life Sciences and vSpring Capital.
Mirabilis was formed in August 2004, shortly after CEO Mike Connolly sold his former company, Novacept, to Cytyc Corp. for $325 million.