Skeletalis emerges from stealth with $8m seed round to develop precision medicine for osteoporosis
Over two-thirds of osteoporosis sufferers are post-menopausal women
Skeletalis, a Boston start-up developing new treatments for osteoporosis — a condition that mainly affects post-menopausal women — has raised $8m in seed funding. The round was led by Pillar VC, with participation from KdT Ventures, age1 and Slocum Management.
Osteoporosis affects more than 10 million people in the US, and over two thirds (around 70%) of those affected are post-menopausal women. Fragility fractures can lead to disability, loss of independence and significant mortality risk, and are estimated to cost the U.S. healthcare system more than $50 billion each year.
Current drug options slow bone loss but are associated with rare, serious side effects and poor long-term adherence.
“Osteoporosis treatment is ripe for innovation,” said founder and CEO Ben Swanson.
“Current therapies are limited by serious side effects that compromise safety, adherence, and long-term efficacy. At Skeletalis, we’re developing precision medicine with tissue and cell specificity, enabling more targeted intervention in osteoporosis progression.”
A major women’s health burden with few modern drug options
The new funding will support development of a precision, bone-targeted therapeutic designed to address long-standing safety and tolerability challenges in osteoporosis care.
Core therapies have remained largely unchanged for decades. Most aim to slow bone loss but are associated with rare yet severe skeletal side effects, low adherence and diminishing effectiveness over time. The longstanding pattern has forced many patients - particularly older women - to decide between safety concerns and inadequate treatment durability.
Shifts in the U.S. regulatory landscape, including new recognition of bone mineral density as a registrational endpoint for fracture prevention, have begun to open the door to novel approaches. Investors in bone health have pointed to these changes as lowering barriers for early-stage innovators.
“Skeletalis is developing a therapy that has the potential to finally offer patients a treatment option that does not come with a major concession,” said Thomas de Vlaam, Partner at Pillar VC.
He noted that complex regulatory requirements had previously slowed innovation, adding that recent decisions “have now shifted to become a tailwind for anyone trying to bring new medicines to patients.”
A targeted approach to chronic bone disease
Skeletalis’ platform is built around localized drug delivery to the skeleton, aiming to reduce systemic exposure while providing sustained, disease-modifying activity at the site of bone deterioration. The company says this approach could extend therapeutic durability and improve tolerability, reframing osteoporosis care from crisis management to long-term prevention.
While the firm’s lead candidate focuses on osteoporosis, Skeletalis believes the same technology could apply across a range of degenerative bone conditions, including periodontitis and paediatric disorders.
The company’s leadership reflects this broader ambition. Alongside Swanson, the team includes Dr. Colin Greineder, an associate professor of pharmacology and physician-scientist with expertise in translational drug design, supported by program leaders involved in developing previous generations of osteoporosis medicines.