Whole-body MRI startup Ezra raises $21M, eyes 50 new locations in 2024
Whole-body MRI startup Ezra has raised $21 million and hopes to open scores of new locations across the U.S. this year, the company announced Thursday.
VC firm Healthier Capital—piloted by Amir Dan Rubin, MBA, former CEO of Amazon’s One Medical—co-led the fundraising round alongside FirstMark Capital. The investment balloons New York-based Ezra’s total to $41 million, with plans to add 50 locations across 20 cities in North America.
Supported by artificial intelligence, Ezra offers a 60-minute, full-body MRI exam for $1,950, allowing asymptomatic patients to seek out health concerns before they surface. For another $550 ($2,500 total), users can add a low-dose CT scan to assess their lungs.
“This year, 10 million people will receive late-stage cancer diagnoses, with survival chances below 20%. At Ezra, we aim to detect cancer early for these 10 million people, improving their chance of getting cured,” Emi Gal, Ezra founder and CEO, said in a Feb. 8 announcement. “I'm thrilled to join forces with Healthier Capital and Amir Dan Rubin to further our goal of making cancer screening more affordable and accessible.”
Ezra launched in 2018 and has since scanned “thousands” of individuals, helping them to pinpoint cancer and over 500 other types of disease, Gal said. The company doubled its revenue in 2023 and in June announced the U.S. FDA had cleared its “Flash” product that facilitates 30-minute full-body MRI scans (sold for $1,350). Gal and colleagues said they plan to add a 15-minute MRI for $500 within the next three years.
“Ezra’s recent advancements in AI-powered full-body MRI scans represent a significant leap in making cancer screening more accessible and affordable, and I am incredibly proud to be part of this mission to detect cancer early for everyone,” Rick Heitzmann, MBA, co-founder and partner at FirstMark Capital, said in the announcement.
The company currently has 18 locations across New York, New Jersey, Los Angeles, Irvine, Calif., San Francisco, Miami and Las Vegas. It hopes to eventually hit all major metro areas in the U.S. Others contributing to the fundraising round included Allianz Life Ventures, the billionaire Schwarzman family, former chair of England’s National Health Service Lord David Prior, Gaingels, Republic, and Mana Ventures.
Some in the specialty have expressed concern about the practice of imaging asymptomatic people, worried it could highlight insignificant issues and lead to additional unnecessary healthcare services. Consumers also have criticized the hefty out-of-pocket price tag, with such companies often catering to the rich and powerful. Others capitalizing on the recent full-body MRI trend include Cindy Crawford-backed startup Prenuvo and radiology practice SimonMed Imaging.
Marty Stempniak has covered healthcare since 2012, with his byline appearing in the American Hospital Association's member magazine, Modern Healthcare and McKnight's. Prior to that, he wrote about village government and local business for his hometown newspaper in Oak Park, Illinois. He won a Peter Lisagor and Gold EXCEL awards in 2017 for his coverage of the opioid epidemic.