Innovate UK and the Office for Life Sciences (OLS) have announced new support for innovation in chronic conditions and cancer. Seventeen projects will receive £10 million in new funding as part of the advancing precision medicines competition. The OLS funding is part of the life sciences vision cancer mission.
Precision medicine offers new ways of treating disease based on individual patient characteristics and can enable earlier and more accurate diagnosis of diseases, including cancer. The funded projects will draw together diagnostic information from a range of sources that when integrated allow more accurate diagnosis and treatment allocation. The projects focus on oncology, musculoskeletal and cardiovascular disease, and other chronic conditions.
Several projects are using artificial intelligence or machine learning either to better diagnose diseases and predict patient outcomes or to help clinicians choose the most effective treatments for individual patients.
One project is developing a blood test that will help predict which patients with advanced breast cancer will benefit from new therapies. While another is looking at how treatment of patients with pancreatic, kidney and lung cancer can be improved.
A further project will test if it is possible to predict which patients with cancer are at risk of developing neutropenia when being given chemotherapy. Neutropenia is a common, but serious side effect, where the number of white blood cells is reduced so patients are more vulnerable to infection.
Arrhythmia, or heart rhythm problems, affect more than two million people a year in the UK and certain types of arrhythmia can be fatal. At least some of the 100,000 deaths caused by arrhythmias each year in the UK could be avoided with earlier diagnosis. One funded project is developing a smart garment to detect arrhythmia quickly and less invasively than current methods.
Minister for Science, Innovation and Research Andrew Griffith said: “Pioneering technology can be key to UK researchers achieving breakthroughs that tackle some of the hardest-to-treat illnesses, such as cancer and heart difficulties. This investment in funding for projects across the UK will harness artificial intelligence and more cutting-edge tech in ways that could ultimately save lives while growing our world-class life sciences sector.
Dr Stella Peace, Executive Director for the Healthy Living and Agriculture Domain at Innovate UK, said: “Innovate UK supports businesses with the very best ideas, enabling more of us to live longer healthier lives, either through the earlier diagnosis of disease or by developing treatments tailored to our needs. These projects highlight the broad spectrum of approaches that UK innovators are developing to improve patient care.”
Funded projects:
- Artificial intelligence (AI) imaging and data integration platform for patient-optimised diagnosis and precision medicine in prostate cancer. Project lead: Lucida Medical Ltd. Project partners: University of Cambridge, Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.
- NISTA: a novel non-invasive, data-enabled machine learning tool enabling earlier and more accurate diagnosis of pancreatic cancer, stratifying patients into more personalised treatment pathways to improve outcomes. Project lead: EosDx UK Ltd. Project partner: University of Ulster.
- Beacon: a companion diagnostic for cyclin dependent kinase inhibitors. Project lead: Proteotype Diagnostics Ltd. Project partner: University of Southampton.
- Large language models based algorithms for personalised cancer detection. Project lead: Abtrace Ltd. Project partner: BCS Clinical Consulting Ltd.
- OncoSelect: machine-learning enabled precision-oncology tool for renal cell carcinoma. Project lead: M:M bio Ltd. Project partner: Weatherden Ltd.
- High accuracy multi-biomarker screen for the early detection of lung cancer. Project lead: Life Science Group Ltd. Project partners: Aberystwyth University; ProTEM Services Ltd; Highfield Diagnostics Ltd; Valley Diagnostics Ltd.
- PREDICT-ONC: precision risk evaluation and G-CSF dosing for chemotherapy-induced neutropenia tool. Project lead: Physiomics Plc. Project partners: Blackpool Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust; Beyond Blood Diagnostics Ltd.
- Transforming heart failure care. Project lead: Heartfelt Technologies Ltd. Project partner: University of Glasgow.
- Personalising rhythm management using AI enabled clothing technology with integrated sensors (PRACTISE). Project lead: Kymira Ltd. Project partner: Imperial College London.
- Pioneering Smart Biofeedback Therapy for M-TMD. Project lead: Jawsense Ltd. Project partner: Nottingham Trent University.
- Clinical validation of osteosight: AI technology for incidental detection of osteoporosis. Project lead: Naitive Technologies Ltd. Project partner: Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital.
- IMPILO-AI: intelligent monitoring of prosthesis conditions in lower limb amputees, advancing innovation. Project lead: PST Sensors Europe Ltd. Project partners: Bio-flex Yarns Ltd; Ulster University.
- An integrated approach to Alzheimer’s disease diagnostics harnessing liquid biopsies and combination AI modelling. Project lead: CFDX Ltd. Project partner: Hyper Unison Ltd.
- LOCOME – long covid and myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome diagnosis and stratification. Project lead: PrecisionLife Ltd.Project partners: University of Edinburgh; Action for M.E.
- Intelligent decision support for faster, more effective and lower-cost precision medicine for hypertension, cholesterol and diabetes with co-morbitities (ExpertCare). Project lead: DXS International Plc. Project partner: Eastern Academic Health Science Network.
- QuBIE: qauantitative biomarker identification for non-endoscopic prediction and monitoring of treatment response in eosinophilic oesophagitis. Project lead: Cyted Ltd. Project partners: East and North Hertfordshire NHS Trust; Nottingham University Hospitals Charity; County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust.
- Transforming diabetic kidney disease care: harnessing integrative multi-omics analysis for precision diagnosis and management. Project lead: Multiomic Health Ltd. Project partner: Queen’s University of Belfast.
