KIYATEC

KIYATEC is a functional precision oncology company founded in 2005 as a spinout from Clemson University by co-founder Matthew Gevaert. Gevaert, who holds a Ph.D. in Bioengineering from Clemson, transitioned from lab research to entrepreneurship to better replicate human biology in a lab setting, aiming to improve cancer treatment. The company is headquartered in Greenville, South Carolina, where it is an anchor tenant in the city's Innovation District.

The core of KIYATEC's business is its proprietary ex vivo 3D cell culture technology, which uses a patient's own living tumor cells, obtained from surgical or biopsy tissue, to create up to 1,000 patient-specific micro-tumors. These micro-tumors are cultured in a laboratory environment that mimics the human body, allowing for the testing of various cancer drugs to predict how the patient's actual tumor will respond. This process provides oncologists with a patient-specific report within 7-10 days, enabling more informed, personalized treatment decisions before therapy begins. This approach aims to avoid ineffective treatments, thereby potentially improving patient outcomes and quality of life.

KIYATEC operates on a dual-sided business model. Its Clinical Services division offers tests for oncologists, with its first commercially available assay being the 3D Predict™ Glioma test for patients with high-grade gliomas, including glioblastoma. This test has been shown in clinical studies to accurately predict patient response to standard-of-care drugs, with responders showing significantly longer progression-free and overall survival. The company is actively developing a pipeline of similar assays for other solid tumors, such as ovarian, breast, and non-small cell lung cancers, in its CLIA-certified and CAP-accredited laboratory. Its Drug Development Services division partners with biopharmaceutical companies, like AstraZeneca, to provide preclinical assessment of investigational drugs. This service helps de-risk drug development by offering clinically relevant data on therapy efficacy before human clinical trials, using platforms like KIYA-Predict™.

The company has secured significant funding through various rounds, including a $3 million Series B2 round in 2019 and an $18 million Series C round in 2022 led by Bruker with participation from LabCorp and others. KIYATEC has also received over $5 million in grants from the National Cancer Institute (NCI) and has established numerous clinical collaborations. The company continues to expand its operations and clinical trial sites to further validate its technology across multiple cancer types.

Keywords: functional precision oncology, 3D cell culture, cancer diagnostics, personalized medicine, ex vivo testing, therapeutic response prediction, glioma, glioblastoma, ovarian cancer, solid tumor analysis, drug development services, CLIA-certified lab, patient-specific micro-tumors, chemotherapy sensitivity, oncology clinical trials, KIYA-Predict, 3D Predict, translational oncology, biopharmaceutical partnerships, cancer treatment selection, live-cell analysis, pre-treatment testing