AI-enabled early breast cancer detection platform Vara today announced a $8.9 million fundraise.

Founded in 2018 by Jonas Muff, CEO, and Stefan Bunk, CTO, Vara’s AI-powered software enhances accuracy and efficiency in breast cancer detection. It is headquartered in Berlin, Germany, with offices in India. 

The software is integrated into Germany’s National Breast Cancer Screening Program, Vara supports 40 per cent of the country’s screening centres, the only AI system deployed at scale in the program, benefiting over 80,000 women monthly. 

Key achievements with the program include:

• Over 100,000 images are assessed per month using Vara’s AI
• Significantly increased cancer detection rates, including finding 50 per cent of the cancers that radiologists otherwise would have missed
• Reduced false positives
• Enhanced workflow efficiency for radiologists

Vara is furthering its expansion into emerging healthcare markets, including India. 

The company began a partnership with NM Medical, a leading provider of imaging services in Mumbai, Bangalore, and Pune, in 2023. The collaboration aims to elevate the standard of preventive care and early breast cancer detection in India, with a focus on mammography as a cornerstone of women’s health programs.

Jonas Muff, CEO of Vara, stated:

“This raise, which is particularly significant in today’s economic climate, not only validates our technology but enables us to accelerate Vara’s expansion for global impact.

We’re extremely pleased with the outcomes we’re already seeing with our partners in healthcare, and we look forward to sharing more progress soon.”

The financing round was co-led by the impact funds of IBB Ventures and European family offices Smart Family Office (Austria) and FJH (Germany).

“By combining an AI-driven screening approach with proven medical evidence and commercialisation in emerging markets, Vara is an excellent fit for the goals of our impact fund,” said Ute Mercker, Investment Director at IBB Ventures. 

In addition to its latest funding, Vara recently published a study, “Strategies for integrating artificial intelligence into mammography screening programmes: a retrospective simulation analysis” with The Lancet Digital Health.

The study evaluated AI integration into mammography screening using nearly two million datasets from the UK, Sweden, and Germany. It found significant improvements in all key screening parameters, including improvement in cancer detection rates, reduction in recall rates, and workload reductions for radiologists.

Lead image: Jonas Muff and Stefan Bunk, founders of Vara, Photo: uncredited.