ImpediMed, a leader in medical technologies to clinically monitor and manage fluid and body composition, has officially signed off on an agreement with SWK Holdings, a life science-focused specialty finance company serving small- and mid-sized commercial-stage companies, to access from the latter a five-year $15 million growth capital facility.
According to certain reports, the stated funding will be used to help ImpediMed unlock significant funding flexibility, while simultaneously supporting its growth and commercialization activities.
Talk about the company’s commercialization activities on a slightly deeper level, they include offering the only FDA-cleared bioimpedance spectroscopy (BIS) technology for the clinical assessment of breast cancer-related lymphedema (BCRL) i.e. the SOZO® Digital Health Platform. The platform’s excellence in what it does can also be understood once you consider it is broadly accepted and recognized for effective and accurate screening of lymphedema, with U.S. health payors now providing coverage for over 258 million covered lives.
Before we expand upon the platform itself, we must acknowledge that Lymphedema, a common consequence of cancer treatment, has been a historically difficult condition to detect before concrete symptoms appear.
In response, ImpediMed’s SOZO® Digital Health Platform leverages BIS to identify fluid changes early, thus enabling intervention before lymphedema becomes a chronic condition.
This approach was markedly validated, in 2024, when National Accreditation Program for Breast Centers (NABPC) updated its accreditation standards to include lymphedema prevention programs that are utilizing BIS as an evidence-based guideline for managing the disease. In case you weren’t aware, NAPBC happens to be a quality program of the American College of Surgeons. The methods accredited under the program must understand, implement, and demonstrate compliance with accreditation standards outlined in Optimal Resources for Breast Care.
During the same year, NCCN Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology (NCCN Guidelines®) for Survivorship also reinforced its reference of bioimpedance spectroscopy as the recommended objective tool to screen at-risk cancer patients for early signs of lymphoedema.
“We believe that the SOZO Digital Health Platform is revolutionizing how clinicians assess and manage fluid and body composition, ultimately improving patient outcomes,” said JD Tamas, Director of Underwriting at SWK Holdings. “We are excited to provide this capital to support ImpediMed’s continued mission to improve the lives of patients by pushing the boundaries of what’s possible in fluid and tissue analysis.”
Turning our attention towards SOZO, it is understood to be the world’s most advanced, non-invasive bioimpedance spectroscopy (BIS) device, which is well-equipped to deliver a precise snapshot of fluid status and tissue composition in less than 30 seconds. The solution, by deploying its underlying technology, can effectively measure 256 unique data points over a wide spectrum of frequencies from 3 kHz to 1000 kHz. This it also does to facilitate the diagnostics of patients who may be suffering from heart or renal failure.
As for the results, they are available immediately online for easy data access and sharing across an entire healthcare system.
Among other things, we ought to mention that, alongside being FDA-cleared, SOZO is also a CE-marked and ARTG-listed digital health platform.
“We are pleased with our agreement with SWK Holdings and the confidence they have shown in ImpediMed, as well as in the future of our SOZO Digital Health Platform,” said Dr. Parmjot Bains, MD, CEO & Managing Director of ImpediMed. “SWK’s proven approach of supporting innovative healthcare companies makes them an ideal partner for us as we pursue our commercial growth strategy over the next five years. We are confident with the business’ direction, and this was reinforced throughout our due diligence process. This facility gives us the time and funding flexibility required to execute on our business plan.”
