Skip to main content

Houston-Area Institutions, Companies Awarded More Than $100 Million in CPRIT Funds So Far in 2023

Published Jun 29, 2023 by Taylor Tatum

MD Anderson Cancer Center

Home to the Texas Medical Center and its world-renowned health care institutions, as well as a growing number of life sciences companies and developments, it’s no surprise that Houston-area organizations are frequent recipients of competitive health care grants, especially for cancer research. 

So far this year, Houston-area companies and institutions have received nearly $106 million in funding from the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT), accounting for nearly 66 percent of all CPRIT funding in 2023. The Houston region’s impressive share of funding further establishes its place as a leader in the life sciences sector. 

In 2007, Texans voted to create CPRIT, the state’s leading agency in the fight against cancer, to invest in research, create and expand life sciences infrastructure across the state, and advance and expedite breakthroughs and innovation. CPRIT is the second largest cancer research and prevention program in the world, awarding over $6 billion to Texas research institutions and organizations to date through its academic research, prevention, and product development research programs. The organization is responsible for recruiting nearly 300 top researchers to Texas and supporting the establishment, expansion, or relocation of over 50 companies to the state, creating nearly 8,000 permanent jobs in Texas in 2022. 

So far in 2023, CPRIT has awarded over 30 grants to a variety of private companies and research and academic institutions located in the Houston region, including: 

  • OncoResponse, a Seattle-based biotech company developing fully human monoclonal antibodies for the treatment of cancers that would otherwise not respond to immunotherapy. The company is moving its headquarters to Houston thanks to a $13.3 million CPRIT grant that will support a clinical study for its OR502 antibodies. 
  • 7 Hills Pharma LLC, a biotech company specializing in immunotherapy through its development of oral integrin activators that will help the body’s cells in creating a successful immune response. 7 Hills was awarded a $13.5 million grant from CPRIT to continue its work in developing treatments for melanoma patients who are resistant to immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI) therapy. 
  • The Cell Therapy Manufacturing Center (CTMC), a joint venture between Resilience and MD Anderson Cancer Center, was awarded $9.1 million to build cell therapy manufacturing technologies that will attract future value-added biotech partnerships. CTMC plans to develop platforms and expertise to reduce manufacturing time, variability, and cost to reach patients, while also supporting innovation efforts and research knowledge. 

Top cancer researchers, academic leaders, and CEOs of CPRIT-funded private companies will convene at CPRIT’s Innovations in Cancer Prevention and Research Conference VI in Galveston in October to discuss the progress being made in cancer research, prevention, and product development at medical and academic institutions and in companies and communities across Texas.

Related News

Digital Technology

Lauxera Capital Partners Acquires Galen Data

12/6/24
Paris (France), Houston (USA), San Francisco (USA) — November 25, 2024 — Lauxera Capital Partners announces the acquisition of Galen Data, a leading provider of secure, cloud-based connectivity solutions for medical devices. This transaction follows Lauxera’s 2022 acquisition of Matrix Requirements, a leading ALM and eQMS software solution for medical device R&D and Quality teams.  This strategic transaction brings together two industry leaders serving the same end-customers with highly complementary products. “The Galen team has built an exceptional product providing medical device companies a cost-effective, compliant, and secure solution for medical device cloud connectivity. Innovation in Medtech is no longer only about better electronic, metal, and plastic designs. Galen empowers Medtech companies to improve care by leveraging the data generated by their medical devices. “We are excited to work hand in hand with management to strengthen the company’s global commercial engine,” said Samuel Levy, Founding Partner, Lauxera Capital Partners.   For Galen Data, this acquisition represents an exciting new chapter with expanded financial resources and a broader, global team.   “We’re incredibly excited to join forces with Lauxera Capital Partners and Matrix Requirements. Their strategic insights and global reach will allow us to accelerate growth into new markets, expand our services, and continue delivering cutting-edge solutions to the medical device industry. This partnership empowers us to take our business to the next level and better serve our clients while pushing forward the innovation that’s at the core of everything we do,” Chris DuPont, CEO, Galen Data.  "This acquisition is an important step towards our vision to provide turnkey vertically-integrated software solutions to address pain points faced by medical devices companies. I am thrilled to welcome Galen’s team.” added Laurent Grandidier, Executive Chairman of the Board.  Lauxera Capital Partners was advised by Goodwin Proctor on legal and tax matters.  About Lauxera Capital Partners  Founded in January 2020, Lauxera Capital Partners is an independent asset management company based in France (Paris) and in the United States (San Francisco). Lauxera is a healthcare specialist investor working to promote the growth of European Healthtech companies. Its first fund, Lauxera Growth I, gathered 262m€ of capital from investors and had invested in 12 fast-growing Healthtech businesses in France, the UK, Germany, Sweden, Denmark and the United States. Led by a team of life sciences entrepreneurs and professional healthcare investors with more than 50 years’ experience, Lauxera aims to support the international commercial expansion of Europe's most promising Healthtech innovations. Lauxera’s highly focused investment approach, its intimacy with the US healthcare ecosystem, its distinctive understanding of innovation trends across Europe and the operating and investment experience of its partners enables Lauxera to be a strong value-add partner for its investee companies.  About Galen Data  Galen Data provides a secure, cloud-based platform designed to connect medical devices to the cloud, allowing for real-time data collection, storage, and analysis. Galen’s platform is compliant with key medical device industry standards, including FDA, HIPAA, GDPR, and CE Marking, which helps medical device companies accelerate time-to-market while ensuring regulatory compliance. Galen Data’s solution simplifies the process of managing connected medical devices by offering a secure and scalable infrastructure tailored to the needs of healthcare technology providers.  Galen Data is an ISO 13485:2016 certified company and is HITRUST r2 Certified on AWS. 
Read More
Life Sciences

One Year In, TMC’s Helix Park Proves to be a Powerful Innovation Hub

11/7/24
Nearly one year since launching its first phase, the Texas Medical Center’s Helix Park is already proving to be a powerful catalyst for innovation, attracting a range of life sciences companies and bolstering collaboration between industry and academia.   The 37-acre campus opened with the TMC3 Collaborative Building and Dynamic One Building, now home to prestigious institutions like Baylor College of Medicine, MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston Methodist, Texas A&M University and UTHealth. Chicago-based venture capital firm Portal Innovations also joined the campus last year, occupying the entire third floor of the Collaborative Building with a 30,000-square-foot space.  Growth continues at Helix Park as local institutions and companies expand their research initiatives and establish a stronger presence on campus. Rice University recently launched RBL LLC, a venture creation studio designed to act as a direct pipeline for new companies built around the technologies developed at its Biotech Launch Pad, established last year.   “Leveraging Rice University’s Biotech Launch Pad breakthroughs and pairing it with the world-class translational infrastructure of TMC Helix Park well positions RBL to drive unprecedented advances in patient care,” said William McKeon, President and CEO of TMC, in a statement. “This partnership between academia, industry and health care is exactly what’s needed to transform medical discoveries into real-world solutions that improve lives globally.”  In September, March Biosciences, an emerging clinical-stage biotech company spun off from Baylor College of Medicine, Houston Methodist Hospital, and Texas Children’s Hospital’s Center for Cell and Gene Therapy, moved to the Helix Park campus. Shortly after the move, March Biosciences successfully closed an oversubscribed $28.4 million Series A financing round. This funding will support the Phase 2 clinical development of MB-105, the company’s innovative cancer-fighting therapy.   Switzerland-based biotech company Artidis also recently expanded to Helix Park, securing 2,000 square feet in Portal Innovations’ suite within the Collaborative Building, according to the Houston Business Journal. The company uses nanotechnology to rapidly diagnose cancer and develop personalized treatment plans.  MD Anderson Cancer Center is also increasing its footprint at TMC with a new $239 million, 281,254-square-foot research facility featuring lab and office space. According to the Houston Business Journal, the facility, set for completion in 2028, will focus on advancing preclinical research.  Additionally, the campus welcomed its first restaurant, Ojo de Agua, which offers a blend of Mexican and Mediterranean cuisine, contributing to Helix Park’s vision of becoming a premier destination.  “We are excited to introduce Ojo de Agua to the Texas Medical Center community and present a new spot where members and visitors can connect, celebrate and collaborate while enjoying a unique culinary experience,” said McKeon in a statement. “Food has a way of bringing people together and as our campus continues to welcome visitors from all over the world, Ojo de Agua will showcase high quality, fresh ingredients that reflect the vibrancy and diversity of our community.”  Learn more about the growth happening at TMC at the Partnership’s State of the Texas Medical Center event on November 14. 
Read More

Related Events

Executive Partners