In welcome news announced last week, 23 companies will benefit from a share of £12 million from the Innovate UK Cancer Therapeutics programme.
The Cancer Therapeutics programme focuses on developing life-changing cancer treatments, including immunotherapies and vaccines. It also supports projects addressing unmet medical needs for treating childhood and young persons’ cancers.
Of the 23 companies, five have a specific brain cancer focus:
- Coding Bio Ltd has been awarded £606,814 for work on a novel messenger RNA-based cell therapy for childhood brain cancer
- £475,743 goes to Pathios Therapeutics Ltd Developing drugs to block a receptor (GPR65), unleashing the immune system to attack devastating brain tumours such as aggressive glioma
- QV Bioelectronics Ltd will benefit from funding of £343,260 to support creating implants to treat childhood brain cancer.
- £551,639 for Revolver Therapeutics Ltd will support identifying tiny proteins, known as peptides, that can enter cells to prevent specific cancer-causing proteins from binding to DNA within a child’s brain tumour – this phenomenon is strongly associated with high-grade childhood brain and spinal tumours and it is hoped that by interfering with these DNA-binding proteins, these cancers affecting children can be treated
- £409,040 will go to Sferola Ltd which is developing next-generation nanotechnology for paediatric brain tumours and partnering with University of Leeds to test its potential in their state-of-the-art preclinical models
Our Director of Research, Policy and Innovation, Dr Karen Noble, said: “We are heartened by this direction of travel and the support offered. Outside of the specific brain tumour focused awards money is also going to other companies whose work could benefit future brain tumour patients. The challenge remains to make sure advancements on the scientist’s bench don’t just translate to the patient’s bedside but are able to translate quickly because our community has been starved of progress and new treatment options for far too long.”
Read more about the awards here.
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Published Monday 2nd September 2024.