Athernal Bio wins £700,000 UK grant to intercept cancer before it starts
What's the deal? Athernal BioDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, a UK biotechnology company, has been awarded nearly £700,000 (≈$948,617) through Innovate UK's Growth CatalystDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → — Investor Partnerships programme. The non-dilutive grant will fund preclinical studies for its lead immunotherapy, designed to stop acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) before it takes hold.
What's the endgame? Athernal is developing therapies that use the immune system to eliminate high-risk cells before they turn malignant. Its focus is high-risk clonal haematopoiesis, a blood cancer precursor that can now be detected years before AML develops.
Why now? Molecular diagnostics increasingly let physicians identify high-risk patients early, yet no therapies exist to treat them at that stage. "Patients at the highest risk of developing leukaemia currently have no therapeutic options to alter the course of their disease," said co-founder and chief operating officer Caroline Haegeman.
The grant arrives alongside continued backing from existing investor Delin VenturesDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →. The Growth Catalyst programme pairs public money with aligned private investment.
By the numbers: Since 2017, the programme has awarded £168 million to more than 400 UK small and medium-sized businesses, catalysing over £448 million of private investment.
The signal: The funding reflects growing confidence in cancer interception — shifting oncology from treating disease to preventing it. "Cancer interception has the potential to transform oncology by shifting treatment from reacting to disease to preventing it," said Jonathan Hay, partner at Delin Ventures.
Read more: daily-tribune.com
Image credit: Generated with Gemini
