National award for pioneering at-home bladder cancer test

University of Birmingham researchers and city cancer testing company Nonacus have won a national award for pioneering work on a non-invasive urine test used by NHS patients.

They received the Partnership between Academia and Business Award at the Medilink UK Healthcare Business Awards, which recognise leading life sciences and healthtech innovation from across the UK.

The national win follows success in the same category at the Medilink Midlands Business Awards earlier this year.

Around 320,000 people visit their GP each year after finding blood in their urine.

Most will not have bladder cancer, but getting an answer can still mean waiting for a cystoscopy, where a camera is passed into the bladder.

Those who do have cancer are waiting in the same queue as those who do not, delaying diagnosis for the people who need it most.

GALEAS Bladder looks for genomic changes linked to bladder cancer in a urine sample that patients provide at home and return by post.

It helps clinicians identify people who need urgent investigation sooner, while some patients at lower risk may avoid an unnecessary cystoscopy where their doctor considers that appropriate.

Eligible patients are already accessing the test at University Hospitals of Leicester, the first NHS trust in England to introduce it, following earlier adoption by two health boards in Wales.

GALEAS Bladder is also about to become available at several NHS sites across the West Midlands this summer.

Lee Silcock, co-founder and chief product officer at Quinton-based Nonacus, said: “Years of close work between the University of Birmingham and Nonacus have brought together the science, technology and clinical evidence needed to get GALEAS Bladder into NHS care.

“Seeing patients now able to complete the test at home, receive clearer answers sooner and potentially avoid an unnecessary procedure is a proud moment for everyone involved. To have built that here in Birmingham makes this national recognition even more special.”

Silcock studied at the University of Birmingham before training as a clinical scientist in the NHS and later co-founding Nonacus, which began life in the University’s BioHub at Birmingham Research Park.

Professor Rik Bryan, director of the University of Birmingham’s Bladder Cancer Research Centre, said: “The foundations of the GALEAS Bladder test date back to 2009 when Doug Ward and I first started considering the possibility of an accurate diagnostic urine test for bladder cancer.

“Subsequent breakthroughs in our ability to detect mutant DNA in urine and funding from Cancer Research UK led us to work more and more closely with Nonacus and their technologies, ultimately culminating in the launch of GALEAS Bladder by Nonacus in 2023.

“This award is a real milestone that recognises this long journey of hard work and translation, a journey and a partnership that continues to evolve.”

The collaboration is continuing to build the clinical evidence for GALEAS Bladder as it reaches more NHS patients, while exploring how the technology could be applied to other cancers in future.

Pictured: Staff from Nonacus and UoB