January 17, 2025

Serena Ventures Backs $10M Seed Round For At-Home Cervical Cancer Screening

Serena Williams

Serena Ventures—Williams’ VC firm participated in a $10 million seed funding for Teal Health – a women’s health startup founded by Kara Egan (CEO) and Dr. Avnesh Thakor. The company, founded in 2020, was formed to create an at-home-self collect cervical cancer screening kit, which is under FDA review for the time being.

During Thakor’s medical experience, he witnessed inadequate change in cervical cancer screenings and formed a self-collect prototype. “Teal Wand™ will provide women with an alternative to the traditional screening method with stirrups and a speculum, making it easier for them to stay on top of their health – and eliminate cervical cancer as a public health concern for all women,” Egan told AfroTech.

How will the kit work?

Once a user requests a kit, it starts a vetting process to confirm eligibility. After a user is approved, the kit will be delivered to your home for sample collection. After this, the sample will be mailed to a lab, where the results will be shared through Teal Health’s application. If users want additional help, they can request to speak to a provider.

The device will be crucial for Black women as they are 41% more likely to develop cervical cancer and 75% more likely to die from it compared to their white counterparts.

“Cervical cancer is nearly 100% preventable with screening, yet in the US, more than 1 in 4 women are not up to date on their screening, and Black women are 41% more likely to develop cervical cancer than white women. It’s time to reverse this trend, our at-home self-collection screening device,” Egan said.

$10 million raised in seed funding

Teal Health secured $10 million in seed funding. Its funding round included involvement from Labcorp and current investors and Metrodora Serena Ventures—Williams’ VC firm.

“This investment allows us to bring Teal Health’s vision to life, getting our transformational screening solution into the hands of women. We’re here to create a new path forward, enabling women to take control of their health with confidence and ease. We’re deeply grateful to our investors,” Egan said.


Image: Getty/Swan Gallet

Habiba Katsha

Habiba Katsha is a journalist and writer who specializes in writing about race, gender, and the internet. She is currently a tech reporter at POCIT.