Endoluminal Solutions Inc. (Head office: Osaka City, Osaka Prefecture) has raised a total of 85 million yen in a seed round of funding, with Yamashina Seiki Co., Ltd. (Head office: Ritto City, Shiga Prefecture) and Hong Kong BlueSky Technologies Innovation Co., Limited (Head office: Hong Kong City) as underwriters, in order to promote the development of a disposable endoscopy system specialized for medical examinations.
This funding will be used to advance the development of endoscopes, AI-assisted systems, and screening information digital transformation systems.
The disposable endoscope system we are developing, with the world's thinnest diameter of 4 mm, will serve as a new screening infrastructure to replace conventional barium tests, reducing pain and the risk of infection and enabling the efficient implementation of large-scale mass screening.
Background of fundraising
Gastric cancer is one of the most common cancers, claiming the lives of approximately 40,000 people annually in Japan. While screening tests are conducted for early detection, the current barium test has long been criticized for its low accuracy in cancer detection and the problem of X-ray exposure. Our company has focused on endoscopic examination as an alternative screening method to barium. We are working to develop a patient-friendly, highly accurate, and affordable disposable endoscopy system. Through this seed funding, we will accelerate research and development and contribute to the early detection of gastric cancer and the reduction of deaths not only in Japan but also on a global scale.
■Our comment
Seiichi Nakajima (Founder, Representative Director, Specially Appointed Professor of Next-Generation Endoscopic Therapeutics, Osaka University)
Barium tests, currently the mainstream method of stomach cancer screening, face issues such as cancer detection accuracy and X-ray exposure. Meanwhile, current gastrocameras were not developed for screening purposes and are clearly over-specified for such use, while the high cost and operational burden also hinder their widespread adoption. Addressing these issues, we are developing the world's thinnest endoscope, a simple, highly accurate, and inexpensive single-use endoscope specifically designed for stomach cancer screening. Our goal is to create a system that enables more people to receive high-quality screening while minimizing the burden on screening sites.
With this investment, we will further advance our efforts to realize a "society with zero stomach cancer deaths" by accelerating technological development and promoting social implementation.
Takuya Kanda (Co-founder and COO)
With over 20 million people undergoing stomach cancer screening in Japan, the product under development has great social significance and market potential. Furthermore, stomach cancer is a major type of cancer in East Asia, including China and Korea, and given the high demand for screening, we have been considering expanding beyond national borders from the start. This seed funding will advance development, but continued support is essential for this project to be implemented in society.
We plan to raise Series A funds between the end of 2026 and the beginning of 2027, and hope to accelerate our global expansion, starting from Asia, through collaboration with domestic and international business companies. We look forward to hearing from investors and business companies who are willing to join us in taking on the challenge of advancing gastric cancer screening to the next stage from a long-term perspective.
■Investor comments
Yoichiro Dainichi (President and CEO of Yamashina Seiki Co., Ltd.)
"The disposable endoscope system specialized for gastric cancer screening that Endoluminal Solutions is developing is a challenge to fundamentally revolutionize gastric cancer screening, brought together by the experience accumulated by Dr. Seiichi Nakajima, who is a surgeon but has been involved in medical device development for 20 years. I am very pleased to be working with a team that has such a high level of awareness and passion for solving social issues."
Through this investment, we hope to promote development and business, and to advance the sophistication of gastric cancer screening around the world as soon as possible.
Hong Kong BlueSky Technologies Innovation Co., Limited CEO
Gastric cancer remains a serious health issue, particularly in East Asia, and the establishment of effective, minimally invasive screening methods that lead to early detection is an urgent global issue.
The stomach cancer screening system being developed by Endoluminal Solutions is simple, cost-effective, and highly accurate, and we expect it to not only help correct regional disparities in medical care in Japan, but also to make a significant contribution to reducing stomach cancer mortality in Asia and other parts of the world where screening infrastructure is insufficient.
Through this investment, we are in tune with Endoluminal Solutions' innovative technology and unwavering commitment to "a society with zero stomach cancer deaths," and will support the early commercialization and social implementation of the product, based on the philosophy that "medical care has no borders." At the same time, together with the company, we aim for a future in which this system will become a global standard and widespread option for stomach cancer screening.
■Comment from our medical advisor (cancer screening specialist)
Katsuaki Kato (Director of the Cancer Screening Center of the Miyagi Cancer Association, Chairman of the Editorial Committee for the "Revised Edition of the Manual for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy Screening for Preventive Screening")
Approximately 10 years have passed since gastroscopy screening was introduced as a public cancer prevention measure in Japan. Current gastroscopy screening is mainly conducted as an individual examination within the framework of health insurance treatment, and while it has a high diagnostic accuracy, it also places a heavy burden on local medical care.
As a result, issues such as limited capacity in the testing system, uneven distribution of medical institutions across regions, and high cost structures have become apparent, and there are still regions that are not fully benefiting from this.
The screening-specific disposable endoscopic system being developed by Endoluminal Solutions is expected to be an effective solution to the issues of "mass processing capacity," "accessibility," and "economic efficiency" that have been plaguing conventional endoscopic screening, while maintaining sufficient performance for gastric cancer screening.
If this system is implemented in society, it will be possible to provide highly accurate gastrointestinal endoscopy examinations as an alternative to gastric X-ray examinations (barium tests) even in areas where it has been necessary to rely on mass examinations via mobile buses.
There are high hopes for this system, which will free examinees from the disadvantages of radiation exposure and help create a society in which everyone can receive equal, high-quality stomach cancer screening, regardless of where they live.
■ Future development
In addition to device development, we are also working on developing an AI support system to support screening operations and digitalization of screening information.
This AI-assisted system utilizes image information obtained during screening to support and streamline the entire screening process, including observation, recording, and assessment. Screening information digitalization, which is also being developed in conjunction with this, will digitize and centrally manage screening results and related information, improving operational efficiency and enhancing data utilization at screening institutions and local governments. Furthermore, this screening information digitalization aims to create a system that allows patients themselves to continually check their screening information. This will not only raise health awareness among patients and encourage continued screening behavior, but also reduce the explanation burden on screening institutions and contribute to improving the quality and operational efficiency of screening operations at local governments. Detailed technical details of these technologies will be disclosed in due course as our intellectual property strategy, including patent applications, progresses.
In the medium term, we aim to establish a new standard for gastric cancer screening by simultaneously improving the efficiency of screening and standardizing its quality by designing devices, AI support systems, and digital transformation of screening information as an integrated whole.