Hong Kong-based biotech startup Phase Scientific International has secured $34 million in Series A funding to advance its innovative urine-based diagnostic technology for cancer detection. The funding round, led by Asian asset management firm Value Partners Group, brings the company's total funding to $57 million.
The investment will accelerate research and development of Phase Scientific's proprietary Phasify technology, which can amplify biomarkers in urine samples to detect various medical conditions with greater sensitivity than conventional methods.
"The successful close of this landmark Series A financing validates the transformative potential of our technology and the growing global demand for accessible, accurate early disease detection," said Dr. Ricky Chiu, Founder, Chairman and CEO of Phase Scientific.
Revolutionary Urine-Based Diagnostic Technology
Phase Scientific's Phasify technology represents a significant advancement in non-invasive diagnostics. The platform can concentrate and purify urine samples, capturing approximately 10 times more target molecules than existing tests considered the gold standard for urine analysis.
The company has already developed what it describes as the world's first urine-based human papillomavirus (HPV) test, which it claims can detect HPV with 98.1% accuracy. Priced at approximately $112, the test has received approval in the United States for HPV screening, though not yet for cervical cancer diagnosis specifically.
"Everyone in our industry wants to crack urine to test for HPV, because it's such a huge market," Chiu explained. HPV infections account for an estimated 690,000 cancer cases worldwide annually, with cervical cancer being the most common HPV-related malignancy.
The urine-based approach offers a compelling alternative to traditional cervical screening methods like Pap smears, which many women find uncomfortable and invasive.
"A lot of testing is still being done through pap smears, which a lot of women find uncomfortable, unhygienic, and are embarrassed to kind of do," noted Maaike Steinebach, founder and CEO of Hong Kong-based women's health consultancy FemTech Future. "The fact that we now have a urine test that we can actually use to test in a very simple, non-invasive way, I think, is great to create more options."
Global Expansion and Future Applications
Founded in 2015 as a spinoff from the University of California, Los Angeles bioengineering program, Phase Scientific has established a cross-border operation with offices in California and mainland China. The majority of its 180 employees are based in Hong Kong, which serves as a key market alongside the United States.
The company has already distributed more than 100 million tests across 30 countries through its at-home testing brand Indicaid, with COVID-19 tests comprising the majority of its business to date. Its product portfolio includes 30 different diagnostic tests spanning cancer, infectious diseases, and women's health.
With the new funding, Phase Scientific plans to initiate what it calls the "world's largest clinical studies in urine HPV." The company's long-term vision extends beyond HPV to more challenging applications.
"Lung cancer, breast cancer, these are the cancers that no one else is able to crack by using a urine test as an early cancer detection," Chiu said. "Of course, it would take a long time to go through our R&D, to demonstrate feasibility...so that would be our long-term vision."
Addressing a Growing Global Health Crisis
The investment comes at a critical time in global cancer trends. According to the World Health Organization's International Agency for Research on Cancer, approximately one in five people will develop cancer in their lifetime. In 2022 alone, there were an estimated 20 million new cancer cases and 9.7 million deaths worldwide, with Asia bearing the heaviest burden at 49.2% of new cases and 56.1% of deaths.
Experts project the global cancer burden will continue to rise dramatically, with an estimated 35 million new cases predicted by 2050—a 77% increase from 2022 levels. This growth is attributed to aging populations and increasing exposure to risk factors such as air pollution, tobacco use, alcohol consumption, and obesity.
The rising need for early cancer detection has spurred significant interest in non-invasive diagnostic approaches like liquid biopsy, which analyzes bodily fluids for disease biomarkers. The global liquid biopsy market is forecasted to reach approximately $22.69 billion by 2034, growing at a compound annual growth rate of 13.91% from $7.05 billion in 2025, according to Precedence Research.
"We are delighted to become a partner of Phase Scientific as it rapidly grows and addresses critical unmet needs in early disease detection," said Dr. Chuen Yan Leung, Partner at Value Partners Group. "Its innovative technology represents a paradigm shift, offering an unparalleled combination of clinical precision and patient-centric solutions that accelerates the development of early disease detection."
Phase Scientific's previous investors include the Gates Foundation, which provided a $100,000 grant in 2016, and the U.S. National Institutes of Health, which contributed approximately $1.1 million in funding between 2017 and 2018.
As the company advances its technology platform, it aims to transform the landscape of cancer diagnostics by making early detection more accessible, comfortable, and accurate for millions of patients worldwide.
