Digital Magnifying Glass for Mammography Receives Inova Support

Inova Personalized Health Accelerator Invests in DeepLook, Inc.

Fairfax, Virginia— A new digital technology designed to improve the detection of early breast cancer in mammograms has received investment from an Inova technology incubator whose mission is to improve health and reduce healthcare costs. 

The Inova Personalized Health Accelerator (IPHA), a program that fosters med-tech innovation in the Mid-Atlantic, has invested in DeepLook, Inc. – a digital health startup with innovative medical imaging software that reveals features in mammograms that are typically beyond the range of human vision. The technology identifies difficult-to-see data currently hidden in radiological images, particularly in dense breast tissue. As a result, DeepLook is poised to improve health outcomes, minimize cost, reduce the number of false positives from mammography images, and decrease the number of unnecessary surgical procedures by enhancing image data for physician interpretation. The company intends to submit the technology for FDA 510k review in 2019.

 “DeepLook’s technology has the potential to significantly improve breast cancer detection,” IPHA Director Rick Gordon said. “We will be working closely with DeepLook to further develop and validate their technology.”

The DeepLook software acts like a digital magnifying glass. Emerging new technologies, particularly Artificial Intelligence (AI), can help identify areas of concern in mammograms but cannot show what’s actually there. DeepLook reveals what triggered the existing mammogram/computer system to mark a suspicious area. Instantly, DeepLook renders a vivid color image of the underlying morphology on the black & white mammogram, allowing radiologists to analyze and compare these features with greater clarity. 

“As AI matures, the field of radiology is expected to undergo significant transformation,” said DeepLook President Greg Belanger. “With Inova’s help, we will position DeepLook as a versatile quality assurance complement for whatever AI technologies may prevail in the imaging marketplace.”  

Women’s health advocacy groups are aggressively targeting the dense breast tissue challenge. So far, 35 states have enacted legislation requiring physicians to notify women with dense breast tissue that their mammograms may be compromised. Similar federal legislation is now pending. DeepLook’s technology is designed to help physicians meet those requirements. 

Media Contact: Kelly Schlageter, kelly.schlageter@inova.org; Steven Schwadron, steve.schwadron@deeplook.com, 202-306-0808

About Inova Personalized Health Accelerator

The Inova Personalized Health Accelerator is a unique program that provides C-suite coaches, customized plans, early stage capital, connections to strategic partners and later stage capital, and introductions to customers for healthcare technology and services entrepreneurs. This approach to enhance med-tech entrepreneurs’ efforts to accelerate new companies through the early stages of product design, capital formation and commercialization will serve as the foundation for a stronger healthcare ecosystem in the mid-Atlantic region. Additional program information is located at www.inovawpe.wpengine.com.

About Inova   

Inova is a global leader in personalized health, which leverages precision medicine to predict, prevent and treat disease, enabling individuals to live longer, healthier lives. At Inova, we serve more than 2 million people each year from throughout the Washington, DC metro area and beyond.

We are shaping the future of health through our integrated network of hospitals, primary and specialty care practices, emergency and urgent care centers, outpatient services and destination institutes. Inova is home to world-class researchers, expert medical specialists and renowned scientists, who are driving innovation to improve patient care, prevent disease and promote wellness. For more information, visit www.inova.org, or find Inova on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.