Typically, cancer patients have a steep hill to climb. And their treatments tend to go beyond the cancer label.
“We find that a cancer patient is never just a cancer patient,” Carla Balch told MBJ. “They are also cardiology, endocrinology, pulmonology [patients].”
This often means treatment at multiple offices, with multiple physicians, who don’t always share electronic records — which can lead to information gaps between hospitals and specialty providers.
So, Balch’s med tech startup, Spesana — Latin for “hope” and “health” — provides an aggregated medical record to ensure each cancer patient gets the best, most efficient care possible, based on their overall needs. Its platform melds molecular diagnostic reports with electronic medical records, prior authorization, payer processes, approved drugs and pathways, clinical trials, clinical literature, and scheduling.
“Molecular diagnostics and real-world data are the ways to true personalized medicine,” Balch said.
The company also has multidisciplinary electronic tumor boards, which allow physicians to collaborate with local — or national — experts, to ensure patients are reviewed by relevant specialists as their care plans are crafted.
And, it’s launching a prior authorization and workflow automation system for verification of benefits that could alleviate administrative headaches in those costly processes.
Spesana isn’t Balch’s first oncology-focused med tech platform; from 2011 to 2015, she was CEO of California-based Altos Solutions, which developed the first web-based oncology electronic medical record software, OncoEMR. In 2014, the Google Ventures-backed Flatiron Health acquired Altos; then-Google Ventures managing partner Bill Maris told The Wall Street Journal, “Altos is like rocket fuel for Flatiron.”
In 2018, multinational pharmaceutical company Roche bought Flatiron — and its key OncoEMR platform — for $2.1 billion.
In October 2020, as her new startup prepared to launch, Balch told MBJ that the team that built out OncoEMR was building out Spesana.
It looks like that was the right team for the job, because a year later, the company has grown by 20%, and its customers include those in life sciences, clinical sites, and molecular diagnostics. This group will soon include health care payers, as well.
Spesana has also secured more funds. The startup raised $1 million, according to a July 2020 U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Form D filing.
And, according to another SEC filing, in May 2021 Spesana raised $2.97 million more.
Looking forward, the company has big goals. And though she didn’t provide details, Balch teased that late this year, Spesana will have news regarding something “special” for patients.
She’s also glad to have her business based in the Bluff City, as it strives to make life better for all types of cancer patients.
“We are proud to be a Memphis-based company making a difference for U.S. clinical sites, molecular diagnostic labs, life science companies, clinical trial groups, and revenue cycle,” she said. “The team is committed to innovation on behalf of patients, regardless of disease, city, or socioeconomic situation.”
Carla Balch is one of three honorees highlighted in MBJ's 2021 Emerging Entrepreneurs Awards. In conjunction with the University of Memphis and Epicenter, MBJ’s editorial team selected three startups and their leaders for the award. The companies must be under three years in age, based in Memphis, and have demonstrated financial performance and excellence in areas of innovation and technology.
