The Chronicle (South Tyneside and Durham)
Funding boost for creators of skin cancer test
THE team behind a first-of-its-kind skin cancer test have received a £2.45m investment boost as they look to launch the test on the NHS and in the USA this summer.
The female-led AMLO Biosciences is a spin-out firm which started at Newcastle University and has developed a brand-new test which can determine whether a skin cancer patient’s melanoma is low-risk – which indicates that it could be treated in a less intensive way. Its use could see fewer patients have to undergo treatment they may not need and also free up NHS capacity to treat those who do require more care. Melanoma is one of the cancers that dogged Sir Bobby Robson – and currently around 16,000 people a year in the UK are diagnosed with it.
But for most, if it’s caught early, the cancer can be removed – though in around 10% of cases, stage 1 melanomas can spread or return. Prior to the test developed by AMLO, there has not been a reliable way of finding out in which people the cancer will recur.
AMLO has previously had some backing from angel investors and other investment groups, but the £2.45m that’s just been announced is by far its biggest cash injection to date. It includes new investment from Ascension’s Life Fund and Conduit’s EIS Impact Fund, and re-investment from Northstar Ventures, Future Planet Capital and Esperante.
Dr Marie Labus, chief executive at the firm, said: “At the moment the only way is to treat patients all the same. This test allows patients to be stratified to identify those who are low-risk.
“We have spent the last five years getting this product to the stage where it’s ready to launch on the market and in the summer we’ll be launching the kit.
“We wanted to focus on starting in our home market, but this money will also allow us to develop the relationships we have in the US to launch the test there this summer too.”
The £2.5m will allow AMLO to expand its team of scientists, too, which currently numbers just eight.
Dr Labus said she was gratified by the support for a firm led by women and added: “It’s really encouraging that our investors have chosen to invest in the North East economy.”
Guy Pengelley, a portfolio manager at Future Planet Capital, said it had “admired Dr Labus and her team’s commitment to delivering long-term returns while improving lives” since first investing in 2020.
We have spent the last five years getting this product ready to be launched on the market