Oncology development programme launches at UK life science campus

A new national oncology development programme is being launched by Bruntwood SciTech at Alderley Park, the UK’s largest single site life science campus.

The Oncology Development programme is also receiving funding from Innovate UK and Cancer Research UK, as part of Cancer Research UK’s Entrepreneurial Programmes Initiative.

The aim of the programme is to advance viable oncology projects more quickly to increase their chances of commercial success.

Also collaborating on the project is major pharmaceutical companies AstraZeneca, Johnson & Johnson Innovation, GlaxoSmithKline and Roche, as well as The Christie NHS Foundation Trust, Medicines Discovery Catapult and the Manchester Cancer Research Centre.

They will support researchers and start-ups looking to develop early-stage innovations within the oncology space.

The nine-month programme’s ultimate goal is to provide potential investors with detailed plans of how companies are planning to deliver key data and value milestone during the next two to three years.

Participating researchers and companies who progress through the programme will be eligible to receive up to £60,000 of grant funding to support further development of their business plans.

“This is a really exciting and unique project that will help turn some of the most promising ideas in cancer research today into investable projects that will improve the way that cancer patients are diagnosed and treated during the course of their disease,” said Kath Mackay, managing director of Bruntwood SciTech – Alderley Park.

“It’s no secret that while the life sciences sector and indeed the wider world has understandably been focused on the pandemic, funding and research into beating cancer has suffered. Our new programme couldn’t be launching at a more critical time and, as with the race to find a Covid-19 vaccine, it signals a major collaborative effort involving global leaders,” she added.