Freenome raised $270M Series C to fund FDA trial for its blood cancer test

Freenome runs a multiomics platform that reads multiple biological signals from a routine blood draw to detect cancer earlier than existing screening tools.

That a routine blood draw read through a proprietary multiomics platform can detect cancer earlier than existing screening methods, starting with colorectal cancer.

More than $500M raised in total since 2014, including a $160M Series B the prior year and this $270M Series C.

Founded in 2014, Freenome built a proprietary multiomics platform designed to catch cancer earlier by reading a wider set of biological signals from blood than standard tests.

After a $160M Series B, Freenome closed an oversubscribed $270M Series C led by new investor Bain Capital Life Sciences and existing investor Perceptive Advisors, joined by eight new investors including Fidelity Management and Research, Janus Henderson Investors and Farallon Capital Management, plus 13 existing investors. Proceeds were earmarked to accelerate the PREEMPT CRC clinical trial, an FDA-registrational study launched in May 2020 to support approval of a front-line blood test for colorectal cancer screening and precancerous lesion detection, alongside a broader pipeline of blood tests for other cancers.

The round was oversubscribed rather than merely closed, signaling investor demand beyond what Freenome needed to raise.

The company tied the raise to a named regulatory milestone — the FDA-registrational PREEMPT CRC trial — rather than general runway, giving investors a concrete test of the platform's clinical claims.

A specific, quantified screening gap (45 million Americans not up to date on colorectal cancer screening) gave the bet a defined market to win before expanding to other cancers.

Naming the exact regulatory milestone a raise will fund — not just runway — is what turns a funding announcement into evidence the underlying platform bet is working.

As of 2020-08-26, Freenome had raised more than $500M since its 2014 founding and was directing the new $270M Series C toward accelerating the PREEMPT CRC registrational trial for its colorectal cancer blood test, while continuing to develop tests for other cancer types on the same multiomics platform.