Pharmaceutical Market Europe • March 2022 • 42
RESEARCH
The Innovation Gateway opens at The London Cancer Hub
The London Cancer Hub has revealed a new incubator and collaboration space for innovative life sciences companies, named the Innovation Gateway. The space offers collaboration, laboratory and office spaces at the centre of the London Cancer Hub, which is becoming a pioneering district for worldwide cancer research, treatments and commercial enterprise.
Based in Sutton, south London, the Innovation Gateway is primed to become home to a variety of start-ups and spin-outs, including those produced from science programmes at The Institute of Cancer Research (ICR).
Lead partners at the ICR, London, The London Cancer Hub and the London Borough of Sutton have set their sights on attracting a range of life sciences companies that may be interested in collaborating with scientists at either the ICR or at the London Cancer Hub.
The Hub is already home to The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust and the ICR, which together, are rated as being in the top four cancer research and treatment centres worldwide.
Meetings are already underway with companies interested in using the space at the new Innovation Gateway, which is next door to the ICR’s £75m Centre for Cancer Drug Discovery.
Councillor Ruth Dombey, leader of Sutton Council, said: “This incubator commercial space is now open for business alongside the world-leading Centre for Cancer Drug Discovery, Maggie’s Centre for cancer care and the Harris Academy science-specialist school. The London Cancer Hub is set to be a hugely exciting new science and research quarter in the capital.
“The Innovation Gateway will be key in supporting this vital work. I look forward to seeing companies move in to create jobs for local residents and put Sutton on the world map for research and drug discovery.”
The Innovation Gateway facilities will include up to seven individual category 2 labs, shared lab space, a large hot-desk area, break-out meeting rooms, kitchen space and up to four company office spaces.
Subject to specific agreements with the ICR, occupants will be able to access a range of facilities at the ICR. These include genomics technologies, such as next-generation sequencing (NGS) – enabling sequencing of samples from cell lines, blood, Formalin-Fixed Paraffin-Embedded (FFPE) material, biopsies, plasma and circulating tumour cells.
Occupants will also be able to benefit from the ICR’s proteomics facility, with a skilled team on hand to provide a comprehensive range of proteome analyses and tailored assay development.
Additionally, those using the space will be able to access bespoke mechanical and engineering services and 3D printing to design, manufacture, repair or customise equipment in a mechanical workshop.
The ability for companies to collaborate directly with ICR researchers in a range of areas provides a big draw as the ICR is already one of the best academic institutions in the world, renowned for its partnership with industry and collaborating with more than 100 companies. The ICR is recognised for its work in cancer drug discovery, contributing discoveries of 20 drug candidates since 2005, of which 11 have entered clinical trials.
The ICR has a record of collaborating with companies across cancer research, from development of diagnostics to early-stage research in drug target discovery and validation. It also hosts new drug development programmes and other treatments that can be tested in clinical trials, in partnership with The Royal Marsden.
Researchers at both The Royal Marsden and the ICR are involved in leading around 50 early-stage clinical studies of new treatments at any one time. Many of these are brought about through industry collaborations, alongside later-stage clinical studies supported by investments or other resources provided by pharmaceutical companies.
Professor Kristian Helin, chief executive of The Institute of Cancer Research, London, said: “The opening of the Innovation Gateway is a hugely exciting moment in the development of The London Cancer Hub and we’re delighted to now be able to offer excellent facilities for life sciences companies of all kinds, as well as collaboration opportunities with leading scientists from across the full spectrum of cancer research.”
He added: “We hope to attract interest from start-ups and spin-outs, as well as small to mid-sized biotech and technology companies and pharmaceutical companies, working on all manner of products and services – everything from therapeutics and molecular pathology to medtech and AI. Businesses taking space here will also play a vital role in the development of a thriving, collaborative scientific culture at The London Cancer Hub, ahead of future waves of expansion that will see construction of further commercial, scientific and clinical buildings.”