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An oncology company that develops revolutionary tumour-blasting technology has won a prestigious medical accolade.

Incanthera Ltd was named Start-Up Company of the Year at the Bionow Awards for its work in developing a new chemical entity which is designed to attack all forms of solid tumours while leaving healthy tissue unharmed.

The Merseyside-based company has developed a groundbreaking ‘smart bomb’ treatment which targets solid tumour cells directly using a unique molecule that allows highly toxic drugs to attack tumours with the potential of virtually no side effects to the rest of the body.

Other patient benefits include improved life expectancy, fewer side effects, and reduced frequency of treatment, resulting in potential cost savings for medical professionals and less disruption for patients. 

Since launching in 2010, Incanthera, which is backed by the University of Bradford where its academic founders benefit from the support of Yorkshire Cancer Research and Cancer Research UK, has secured investment from SPARK Impact, managers of the North West Fund for Biomedical. They have also raised funding from private individuals who share a concern for improving the chances of surviving cancer. The company is now in the final stages of securing further investment to progress to Phase 1 clinical trials.

The prestigious Bionow awards dinner, where the company received the award, was held at The Mere Golf Resort and Spa and was attended by over 280 executives from the biomedical industry.

Dr Simon Ward, CEO of Incanthera said: “We are delighted to have won such a well-recognised industry accolade and hope that this will raise awareness of the vital work the team is doing to provide targeted cancer therapy.

“The award demonstrates the value that the sector places on our research into the treatment of cancers, and we hope to see that research eventually result in an increase in the number of people being successfully treated for cancer with fewer side effects.”

Dr Penny Attridge from SPARK Impact said: “Incanthera is a fantastic example of a spin-out company on the road to success. They have a clear strategy and an excellent team, and I’m sure this award will be the first of many.”