52 North

52 North Health is a Cambridge-based medical technology company focused on transforming urgent care pathways in oncology. Established in 2018 by a team of University of Cambridge postgraduates, the company's name signifies the geographical coordinates of its founding city. The co-founding team includes CEO Umaima Ahmad, Chief Scientific & Medical Officer Dr. Saif Ahmad, Chief Digital Officer Dr. Mireia Crispin, and Chief Technology Officer Dr. Nikki Weckman, who bring together expertise from the Departments of Oncology and Engineering. Dr. Saif Ahmad, an Academic Consultant Clinical Oncologist, joined the NHS Clinical Entrepreneur Programme in 2019, which helped foster the company's development.

The company's primary business is the development of affordable technologies designed to empower patients and facilitate decentralized clinical decision-making. 52 North addresses the critical needs of cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy who are at risk of neutropenic sepsis (NS), a life-threatening complication where the immune system is severely weakened. The current standard of care requires patients feeling unwell to immediately go to the hospital for blood tests, a process that can be stressful, time-consuming, and often unnecessary, as about half of these visits are false alarms.

To solve this, 52 North developed Neutrocheck®, its flagship product. Neutrocheck® is a portable, low-cost medical device that allows patients to perform a simple finger-prick blood test at home. Paired with a digital app, the device provides a rapid and accurate measurement of a patient's neutrophil levels, identifying their risk of neutropenic sepsis within minutes. This enables patients at high risk to seek immediate medical attention, potentially receiving life-saving antibiotics faster, while allowing those not at risk to safely remain at home. The system aims to improve patient safety and quality of life while reducing unnecessary hospital admissions and saving healthcare systems millions. In addition to Neutrocheck®, the company is developing ACORN™, an AI-driven digital platform to further enhance the safety and efficiency of acute oncology care delivery.

52 North operates on a B2B2P (Business-to-Business-to-Patient) model, intending for its devices to be available to patients through healthcare providers like the NHS. The company has achieved significant milestones, including securing over $10 million in total funding through a combination of equity investments and grants. Key funding rounds were led by prominent investors such as Cambridge Enterprise, KHP Ventures, and Cedars-Sinai, marking the first co-led investment by leading hospital venture funds from both the UK and the US. The company has also received grants from bodies like Innovate UK and the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) and has established collaborations with organizations like Macmillan Cancer Support and The UK Sepsis Trust.

Keywords: Neutrocheck, neutropenic sepsis, chemotherapy complications, point-of-care diagnostics, remote patient monitoring, oncology technology, medtech, at-home blood test, neutrophil count, digital health platform, cancer care, patient empowerment, Cambridge startup, Saif Ahmad, Umaima Ahmad, ACORN platform, decentralised healthcare, medical device, sepsis detection, finger-prick test