Pear Therapeutics (PEAR), which has developed prescription digital therapies called eFormulations, has raised $20M in a round led by 5AM Ventures, Arboretum Ventures, and JAZZ Venture Partners led the round, with participation from Bridge Builders Collaborative and several additional investors. The company will use the money to build and launch a portfolio of eFormulations, including reSET and reSET-O, for treating substance use disorder.
“By combining novel digital interventions with drugs, PEAR has demonstrated the ability to enhance efficacy well beyond anything that is commercially available or in clinical development,” Corey McCann, President and CEO of PEAR, said in a statement. “eFormulations have the ability to quickly elevate the standard of care for many of the disorders of the brain and beyond.”
PEAR’s first products, reSET and reSET-O, are proprietary digital therapies comprised of a patient-facing smartphone app and a clinician-facing web interface that treat substance use disorder. The duo has been tested and validated in 6 randomized clinical studies involving more than 1500 patients. In a pivotal randomized trial, 399 patients seeking treatment for substance use disorder related to cocaine, alcohol, cannabis, and stimulants across 10 treatment centers received either face-to-face therapy or reSET in lieu of therapist time. The latter group demonstrated significantly higher rates of abstinence and higher rates of retention in treatment than patients receiving face-to-face therapy alone. PEAR plans to submit reSET for FDA approval in the first half of this year.
PEAR’s first digital therapies, reSET and reSET-O, are comprised of a patient-facing smartphone app and a clinician-facing web interface.The company’s other eFormulation, reSET-O, combines the reSET modules with pharmacotherapy for Opiate Dependence. In three separate randomized clinical trials involving over 465 patients, reSET-O has shown the ability to enhance abstinence, enhance retention in treatment, and reduce required clinician intervention time in Opiate Dependence.
Looking into the future, PEAR wants to launch eFormulations for treating many of the disorders of the brain. One of the products, targeting schizophrenia, has already demonstrated patient usability and clinical efficacy in combination with multiple medications, and is currently being examined in multiple large-scale clinical trials. The company has also developed products that enhance medications for treating chronic pain, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), general anxiety disorder (GAD), major depressive disorder (MDD), and insomnia.
In March 2015, PEAR raised an undisclosed amount of money in a round led by 5AM Ventures.