What You Should Know:
– Daymark Health, a company aiming to redefine the cancer care experience, has publicly launched with an $11.5M in seed funding co-led by Maverick Ventures and Yosemite, with additional participation from Oncology Ventures. Daymark was launched out of Healthcare Foundry, with Robert Pahlavan and Jonathan Rhodes as co-founders leading thesis development.
– The company began operations this year in partnership with a leading payer in the Northeast, providing evidence-based, supportive cancer care to over 2,500 cancer patients.
The Need for Redefined Cancer Care
Daymark Health highlights that approximately two million people are diagnosed with cancer annually in the United States, and each patient spends over 8,500 hours per year outside of the oncology clinic. This often leaves patients to independently manage questions, symptoms, and urgent needs.
Cancer Takes A Village
Daymark Health was founded to address the clinical, mental health, and social needs of cancer patients. The company delivers care through a comprehensive cancer care platform and a value-based care model, taking on total cost of care risk contracts for health plans. Daymark’s community-based team, consisting of nurse practitioners, nurses, social workers, and Health Partners, works alongside a patient’s oncologists and primary care providers to optimize care delivery, both virtually and in the home. The $11.5M seed funding will enable Daymark Health to expand its clinical team, accelerate platform development, and launch new health plan partnerships across the country
Oncology and Value-Based Care Leaders
Daymark Health has assembled a team of oncology and value-based care leaders, including:
- Roy Beveridge, former Chief Medical Officer of Humana and U.S. Oncology, as Executive Board Chair
- Ezekiel Emanuel, an architect of the Affordable Care Act, as Clinical Advisory Board Chair
Both have taken on roles within Daymark to support the company’s growth and operations.
“Despite the advances in cancer treatment made over the past 50 years, patients still face a fragmented health system that gets in the way of comprehensive, personalized cancer care,” said Dr. Justin Bekelman, CEO and Co-Founder of Daymark Health and renowned oncologist, innovator, and former leader of Penn Medicine’s Center for Cancer Care Innovation at the Abramson Cancer Center. “We are delighted to launch our care platform to patients across the country and set a new standard of cancer care, one that will redefine what’s possible in oncology.”
