Released: Wednesday 14th March 2012

The government is inviting UK companies to apply for funding to develop tests that will identify patients at risk of either suffering an adverse response or not responding to specific therapies.

The Technology Strategy Board (www.innovateuk.org) in partnership with Department of Health (www.dh.gov.uk) will invest up to £7.5 million through the award of development contracts. Selection will be made primarily on the potential value of the proposed products to the health service.
The competition aims to bring together the different players necessary to evaluate the best ways to develop and implement such diagnostic tests, establish the clinical value chain and determine the potential for commercialisation and uptake of the tests. The competition also aims to establish if Stratified Medicine approaches can be used to improve the current clinical care pathway in the UK to address the risks of side effects or adverse reactions and/or identifying non-responders to treatments.

Proposals for funding should be industrially-focussed and business-driven, and must clearly present the economic benefits to be gained through exploitation of the product. Support will be provided to projects seeking to develop innovative products such as diagnostic tests and/or analytical algorithms capable of predicting either an adverse responder to a specific therapy, those who will not respond to a therapy (non-responder) or can provide early indication that a patient is not responding to treatment. The projects must address a treatment (whether it involves a medicine, medical device or procedure) which is currently licensed for use in the UK.

The competition will be run through the SBRI programme, which provides for development contracts to be 100% funded, and it will be run in two phases. Applicants successful in the first phase will be funded to produce a development plan including a detailed assessment of the economic value of the product. The products with the best value combined with technical feasibility will be selected in phase 2 for development.
The competition opens on 26 March 2012 and the deadline for registration is 6 June 2012. Applications must then be submitted by 13 June 2012. A briefing day for potential applicants will be held on 4 April.

For further information please visit: http://www.innovateuk.org/_assets/0511/Strat_Med1303.pdf

or download the SBRI document
 

Ends

Notes to Editors:
1. The Technology Strategy Board is a business-led government body which works to create economic growth by ensuring that the UK is a global leader in innovation. Sponsored by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS), the Technology Strategy Board brings together business, research and the public sector, supporting and accelerating the development of innovative products and services to meet market needs, tackle major societal challenges and help build the future economy. For more information please visit: Technology Strategy Board website.

2. The vision of the Technology Strategy Board is for the UK to be a global leader in innovation and a magnet for innovative businesses, where technology is applied rapidly, effectively and sustainably to create wealth and enhance quality of life. Our approach to accelerating the pace of innovation in the UK is captured in our strategy document, Concept to Commercialisation, published in May 2011. This builds on our first strategy, developed in 2008, and sets out new directions, taking into account the challenges and exciting opportunities that lie ahead. To see the new strategy please visit: Concept to Commercialisation.

3. The Technology Strategy Board’s _connect platform provides an effective and powerful way to collaborate online, network and share knowledge with other innovators. It provides a place to work together securely and share information & knowledge. Users can utilise the online tools to work collaboratively, discuss ideas and find events. The networks offer up-to-the minute news on funding, events, articles and publications, plus information about all 15 Knowledge Transfer Networks. Through the networks, users can find potential business partners, entrepreneurs, collaborators, other innovators, researchers and academics.

4. SBRI (Small Business Research Initiative) is co-ordinated by the Technology Strategy Board and is designed to encourage government departments and other agencies to ensure that a proportion of their procurement budget goes to innovative companies and that the departments are procuring innovative solutions to some of the challenges that they face. The aim of SBRI is to use the power of government procurement to drive technology development, especially in early-stage companies, supporting projects through the stages of prototyping and demonstration, which are typically hard to fund. SBRI offers an excellent opportunity for businesses to develop and demonstrate technology, supported by a customer, and to reach the first rung on the government procurement ladder. For more details see: SBRI

5. For further information about the Stratified Medicine: Diagnostics for adverse or non-response SBRI competition for development contracts please visit:

6. Media enquiries only should be addressed to the Technology Strategy Board’s media relations consultant or manager:
Nick Sheppard
Media Relations Consultant
Mobile: 07824 599644, Email: nick.sheppard@tsb.gov.uk

Claire Cunningham
Media Relations Manager
Mobile: 07554 115745 Email: claire.cunningham@tsb.gov.uk.

7. Companies and other organisations seeking information about Technology Strategy Board funding competitions should visit the Competitions page of the Technology Strategy Board website – Competitions page , email mailto:competitions@innovateuk.org or phone the Competitions Helpline at 0300 321 4357.

8. To see all press releases from the Technology Strategy Board please visit: Press Releases.

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