Thanks to the capital increase from IAG members and Athensmed, the startup aims to take its drug-free therapy for depression to worldwide market.
Sooma Oy, a Finnish medical device company developing non-invasive brain stimulation devices for treatment of neurological and psychiatric disorders, works with Finnish and Italian Angels members to secure a new investment of 1.0m Euro in equity along with a 250k Euro grant by Business Finland.
Since its establishment in 2013, Sooma has been working closely with leading experts in psychiatry and clinical neurophysiology to provide better care for depression and chronic pain. The board and advisors are seasoned medical and healthcare technology experts with successful backgrounds in corporate leadership and entrepreneurship.
Sooma’s safe and effective depression therapy technology modulates neuronal activation in the frontal areas of the brain. The therapy provides a faster and more effective recovery from depression than antidepressant medication and is not associated with any serious or systemic side effects, making it a safe and effective treatment for situations when medication cannot be used. The painless therapy can be self-administered by the patient at home, and after about 3 weeks of completing one 30-minute session per day, Sooma’s solution helps more than 60% of patients to obtain a treatment response reducing the symptoms of their depression, with more than 20% of patients reaching full remission, even starting from severe depression.
Additionally, Sooma Pain Therapy modulates the sensory and affective processing of pain. This treatment results in significant quality of life improvement for patients suffering from chronic neuropathic pain, as well as drastic pain relief for patients suffering from Fibromyalgia in just two weeks. Sooma’s solution provides long-lasting pain relief, up to 58% two months after the end of treatment, and also reduces post-operation opioid use by 59%.
Tuomas Neuvonen CEO & co-founder of Sooma Oy declared: "I would like to thank Athensmed and Italian Angels for Growth for demonstrating their trust in Sooma with this investment, as well as our previous investors for their support in our mission. We are also thankful for Business Finland for their continued support. Our solution, a medication-free treatment for clinical depression, is already improving the standard of care and reducing costs in the most forward-looking care centers in Europe and other selected markets. This newest funding will help us to reach the next milestone in our journey as the leading provider of home-based neuromodulation therapies".
Kustaa Piha, CEO and investor of Athensmed, who strongly believes in this project, said: “I’m very happy for the possibility to invest in Sooma. As a medical doctor I see the urgent need for Sooma’s product. As an investor, I’m happy for the strong development of the company and great steps in building international sales”.
“We have been impressed by the efficacy shown by Sooma in clinical practice and are very happy to invest in a non-invasive, drug-free solution for treating depression. This is the thirteenth foreign investment by the members of Italian Angels for Growth and is a strong indication of the world-class level of the management team in Sooma”, declared Michele Marzola and Carlo Brunetti, IAG members and Champions of the investment in Sooma.
Antonio Leone, Chairman of Italian Angels for Growth: “We really appreciate the team’s strong background and the results already achieved in creating this innovative drug-free treatment for pain and depression. We are very excited to add this investment into IAG members’ portfolio”.