Which problem is your research seeking to solve? When did you first realise there was commercial potential?
Therapy resistance remains one of the biggest challenges for patients with cancer as clinicians can’t reliably detect, and then eliminate, resistant tumour cells. As a result, patients continue to be treated with therapies that no longer work and the disease, unfortunately, progresses.
Our research uncovered a way to make these harmful cells visible to clinicians. Not only can we now see the danger, but we have developed new therapies that selectively kill the resistant cells. We use a technology that has recently gained huge interest both from oncologists and pharmaceutical companies, known as 'radiotheranostics'. Our radiotheranostic uses very small amounts of radioactivity attached to a drug that only binds to a protein that is present in these resistant cells. This radioactivity allows us to see the disease when the patient has an imaging scan, and it also specifically treats the disease from within the body, whilst sparing healthy organs.
The commercial potential of our research became clear the first time our lead compounds showed selective uptake and prolonged binding to therapy resistant tumour models - a real ‘wow!’ moment - revealing its potential to change the way patients with cancer are treated.
What initial steps did you take to explore the innovation?
We have validated our theranostic across multiple independent biological assays, optimised the chemistry to both produce the drug and attach the radioactivity, and mapped its translational pathway.
King’s supported us with IP guidance and connected us with expert advisors to sound out the market.
Why did you decide to join King’s Spinout Accelerator?
We wanted to refine our commercial strategy and gain the discipline needed to transition from a research concept to a company. The Accelerator provided a structured environment to test our assumptions, refine our business plan, taught us the importance of putting good governance in place and align our scientific milestones with investor expectations. It also helped us articulate the societal and clinical value of our work in a way that resonated beyond academia.
What’s been the biggest learning from your time on the programme?
The Accelerator helped us turn a strong scientific story into a fundable, execution-ready plan. We left with a realistic development pathway, a board-level narrative, and investor-grade financials. The most valuable elements were access to direct feedback from in-house experts and investors who will ultimately decide whether our product is adopted.