Travera

About Travera

Travera operates in the precision oncology sector, providing oncologists with a therapy guidance platform to aid in personalized cancer treatment. The company was established in 2017 to commercialize a breakthrough technology from the Manalis Laboratory at MIT's Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research. The founding team includes serial entrepreneur Clifford Reid, who served as the founding CEO, alongside Robert Kimmerling, Selim Olcum, Mark Stevens, Scott Manalis, and David Margulies. Reid, a physicist and mathematician by training, previously founded three public companies, including the early search engine Verity and the human genome sequencing company Complete Genomics. His experience in applying high-tech software and engineering principles to the life sciences was pivotal in recognizing the potential of the MIT technology.

The core of Travera's business is its Rapid Therapy Guidance™ test, which assists oncologists in selecting the most effective cancer drugs for their patients. The company serves oncologists and patients with advanced-stage or relapsed cancers who have limited treatment options. Revenue is generated through its CLIA-certified Laboratory Developed Tests (LDTs). Travera's technology is based on the Suspended Microchannel Resonator (SMR), a device that can precisely measure the mass of individual living cancer cells. Instead of waiting days or weeks to determine if a drug causes cell death, Travera's platform measures minute changes in a cancer cell's mass just hours after being exposed to a drug. This rapid measurement of mass accumulation rate (MAR) serves as a biomarker to predict a drug's effectiveness. The test has a turnaround time of approximately two days, a crucial factor given that cancer cells do not survive long outside the body and can change their biological characteristics.

Travera's primary product, the RapidSelection™ test, is applicable to a wide range of cancers, including solid tumors and hematologic malignancies, and can test over 100 FDA-approved drugs. The company also developed the Travera NOVA™ test, a blood-based assay that measures the functional response of a patient's T-cells to immunotherapy drugs. Clinical studies have indicated a predictive accuracy of 80% for its therapy guidance test. The company has secured significant funding, including a Series A round, to advance its clinical studies and commercialization efforts, with investors like Khosla Ventures and the National Cancer Institute.