Blaze Bioscience, Inc., a privately held biotechnology company dedicated to developing products that assist surgeons in their quest to improve the lives of cancer patients, announced today that the company has raised $5 million in Series A financing. The new funds will be used to further advance the company's Tumor Paint technology, which was originated in and licensed from the laboratory of one of Blaze Bioscience's founders, Dr. Jim Olson of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center.

Blaze Bioscience is developing Tumor Paint for real-time, high-resolution visualization of a broad array of solid tumors. By binding to and illuminating cancer cells, Tumor Paint may enable surgeons to see and remove cancerous tissue that might have otherwise been undetected. An ability to more precisely view tumor margins during surgery could also allow for the sparing of critical normal tissue, such as nerve or brain. With surgery remaining a primary form of cancer therapy and often offering the greatest chance for cure, Tumor Paint has the potential to transform the surgical treatment of cancer.

"This funding is a significant milestone for Blaze Bioscience. It will allow the company to transition from the seed stage to full execution mode moving Tumor Paint into development, including product scale up and toxicology studies, on schedule," said Heather Franklin, Co-Founder, President and Chief Executive Officer.

"We are very pleased to have raised the necessary capital to move Tumor Paint forward. We remain inspired by the needs of the pediatric brain cancer patients for whom the technology was developed, and look forward to the possibility of expanding the application of Tumor Paint to major solid tumors," said Dr. Jim Olson, Blaze Bioscience Co-Founder and Board Member.

About Blaze Bioscience, the Tumor Paint Company
Blaze Bioscience, Inc. is a Seattle-based, privately held biotechnology company dedicated to developing products that assist surgeons in their quest to improve the lives of cancer patients. The company was founded in 2010 to develop and commercialize the Tumor Paint technology. Tumor Paint provides real-time, high-resolution intraoperative visualization of cancer cells, enabling better detection and more complete and precise surgical resection of cancer. The first Tumor Paint product candidate, which is a combination of a targeting peptide and a fluorescent beacon, is under development for multiple solid tumors.