Real-world data startup Crescendo Health launched Thursday with $3.4 million from Define Ventures and other investors. 

WHAT IT DOES

The startup aims to collect longitudinal data for clinical research, including information from other healthcare encounters that might not be collected when patients choose to participate in a trial. 

The company partners with biopharma companies, medical device manufacturers and contract research organizations to provide other health data, like primary care information, emergency room visits, lab tests and prescription fills. 

Participants can sign up online and agree which information they want to share. Crescendo works to collect their health records through APIs and data partnerships, converts it into a format for researchers, and provides the data back to participants through a patient portal. 

The startup plans to use the investment to create software that allows its life science partners to study the long-term effects of treatment and track patient outcomes. 

"Patients participating in clinical trials generate valuable health data throughout their healthcare journey, so researchers shouldn’t be limited to information gathered in the four walls of a research clinic. However, to date, these external real-world data elements weren’t accessible to trial sponsors at scale, which is why we’re building the machinery and support required to change the paradigm," Sam Roosz, cofounder and CEO of Crescendo Health, said in a statement.

"We are working towards a future where research is seamlessly integrated with routine clinical care, making participation easy and accessible for patients from all backgrounds."

MARKET SNAPSHOT

Collecting longitudinal data provides a more holistic view of a patient's health, which could be especially as researchers study new therapies that could require long follow-up periods, IQVIA's Adam Mariano and David Voccola told Healthcare IT News last year. 

Another company focused on pulling data from health records is nference, which launched its nSights platform last year. It collects de-identified patient clinical data from academic medical centers, including clinical notes, radiology results, lab tests and electrocardiograms, for researchers to use to develop therapeutics and diagnostics. nference also recently announced a partnership with Duke Health.

German startup Temedica announced it had raised another €25 million late last year, bringing its Series B to €42 million. The Munich-based company offers the Permea real-world data platform and builds digital companion apps that allow patients to track symptoms and medication use.