Nue Life Health raised another $1.9 million from existing investors as the ketamine-assisted therapy startup releases a new app.
Patients can now access the Nue Life app for free from the Apple App and Google Play stores to use its curated music playlists, biometric data integration and wellness programs to support their therapy. The platform's "Nue Score" progress tracking system helps members set daily health and lifestyle goals to aid their treatment and can track ketamine therapy sessions. That includes recording real-time heart rate data during the sessions and transcribing voice notes recorded by patients.
Nue Life co-founder and CEO Juan Pablo Cappello said patients who take advantage of the wellness company's supporting technology can experience a 20-30% improvement over the baseline compared to drug-only therapy.
"As pioneers of this nascent space, we knew that we had to demonstrate that our vision of delivering a comprehensive program to our patients, which was composed of not just of ketamine prescription, but more importantly based on the delivery of a personalized care protocol," he said in a statement.
Medical research suggests mind-altering drugs such as ketamine, psilocybin mushrooms and MDMA could be effective treatments for conditions like depression and post-traumatic stress disorder in conjunction with therapy.
Nue Life reports more than half of its patients with moderate to severe treatment-resistant depression experienced a 50% reduction in symptoms after three ketamine therapy sessions. After six sessions, 64% of its patients reported fewer symptoms.
Supporters of psychedelic-assisted therapy claim that traditional pharmaceuticals, such as antidepressants, can often mask symptoms of anxiety and depression, but do not heal those conditions. Cappello previously told the Business Journal that he believes ketamine therapy can help patients uncover and address the root cause of their trauma.
While there have been some promising studies, the long-term impacts of using substances like psilocybin, ketamine and MDMA as part of a mental health treatment plan are still unclear. And, like cannabis, those compounds (aside from the medical use of ketamine) are federally illegal.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is signaling that psychedelics could have some therapeutic benefits. In 2019, the agency approved a ketamine-based nasal spray for patients suffering from major depressive disorder after determining the treatment is safe and effective. It also granted at least two breakthrough therapy designations for psilocybin-based drugs for the treatment of acute depression.
Nue Life offers at-home ketamine therapy, in-clinic therapy, individual health coaching and telehealth services in 15 states, including Florida. It expects to expand to an additional 20 states by the end of the year.
Headquartered in Miami Beach, the company has raised more than $26 million from investors such as Palm Drive Capital, Myelin VC, Obvious Ventures and and Western Technology Investment.
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