Biotechnology firm Freenome has secured $160m (£128m) series B financing to advance the development of its multiomics blood testing platform for early cancer detection.

With the latest series B funding, led by RA Capital Management and Polaris Partners, Freenome’s total financing reached to $238m (£190.8m).

The funding round saw participation from the other new investors that include Perceptive Advisors, and funds and accounts advised by T. Rowe Price Associates, Roche Venture Fund, Kaiser Permanente Ventures, and the American Cancer Society’s BrightEdge Ventures.

Freenome’s existing investors such as Andreessen Horowitz, GV (formerly Google Ventures), Data Collective Venture Capital, Section 32, and Verily Life Science were also participated in the series B financing round.

Freenome will use the funding to carry out a pivotal validation study on the platform and submit the results to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and Centres for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).

The company will submit the first application of its platform in colorectal cancer screening, under the Parallel Review Programme. It will also use the funding to expand its laboratory infrastructure and software.

The multiomics platform will help identify crucial biological signals from a routine blood draw.

Freenome’s platform incorporates assays for cell-free DNA, methylation, and proteins with advanced computational biology and machine learning techniques to detect additive signatures, which improve the accuracy for early cancer detection given the molecular subtypes of cancer are heterogeneous in nature.

It helps in integrating a multidimensional view of both tumour and immune-derived signatures, allowing in early detection of cancer.

Freenome CEO Gabe Otte said: “We are fortunate to have an experienced and proven group of biotech and healthcare investors who share our mission of making early detection of cancer a routine part of patient care.

“In addition, we are excited to welcome several strategic investors who are committed to our mission. Each brings insight, expertise, and partnership opportunities to accelerate our path to positively impacting patient care.”

Based in South San Francisco of California, Freenome is involved in the development of simple and accurate blood tests for early cancer detection.