A Newcastle firm specialising in diagnosing early signs of skin cancer has secured £1.5m worth of investment.
AMLO Biosciences Ltd, which is based at Newcastle Helix, has developed a new technique to test for early stage skin cancer and can reduce the amount of misdiagnosed tumours.
The lifesaving test is able to class patients as low or high risk of developing cancer from a routine examination.
Around 15% of people with Stage I and II melanoma are incorrectly assessed for how likely cancer will spread to other parts of their body.
AMLo bleives its product, AMBLor, has the potential to save up to 2,000 lives a year in the 海角视频 alone.
Dr Sandy Primrose, AMLo’s chair, said: “This recent investment is a validation of the potential of AMLo’s team and technology. The company is entering into an exciting phase and looks forward to turning this financial support into long term value and most importantly, improved outcomes for skin cancer patients.”
The company will now use its £1.5m investment to complete clinical studies and market AMBLor in the 海角视频. It is also looking to commercialise AMBLor in the US and Australia next year.
On top of this AMLo is looking to create a number of new jobs. This will include recruiting a research technician, two post doctoral research scientists, and sales and marketing staff.
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The recruitment drive will grow the four-strong, all female company to a team of 10.
The investment was secured from the Northern Accelerator Seed Fund and the North East Innovation Fund, which are managed by Northstar Ventures, as well as Esperante Ventures and The British Innovation Fund, which is managed by Milltrust International.
Alex Buchan, investment director of NorthStar said: “We are excited about this investment from NASIF which is aimed at showcasing and supporting the high quality companies spun out of North East universities.
“The potential for AMBLor in the USA, Australia and the 海角视频 is significant. The commercial plan embraces novel technology allied to genuine unmet healthcare needs in skin cancer.
“AMLo’s team comprises expert scientific and commercial staff who have already created impressive scientific results. We are pleased to have supported them from the start and been impressed with how the company has developed.”
Guy Pengelley, from Milltrust, added: “We are extremely pleased to invest into AMLo. We were impressed by AMLo’s efforts to reduce the suffering caused by inadequately diagnosed skin cancers. There is significant market need to improve cancer outcomes.
“This investment into AMLo, a spin out from Newcastle University, is in line with the British Innovation Fund’s objective of investing in and developing some of the best university research in the 海角视频.”