Submitted by Pooja Pandey on Mon, 07/10/2024 - 09:33
A major new research hub will focus on the development of low-cost, portable devices to identify and visualise cancer using optical, acoustic and photoacoustic imaging.
The Optical and Acoustic Imaging for Surgical and Interventional Sciences (OASIS) hub, is one of five hubs that aims to transform healthcare through the development and application of revolutionary new technologies.
The OASIS hub, led by UCL, the University of Cambridge and Imperial College London, will create low-cost, portable devices to detect the early signs of cancer by ‘listening’ for soundwaves and using optical tools.
Every year, approximately 375,000 people in the UK are diagnosed with cancer, and over 50% of them undergo surgical interventions. Unfortunately, the imaging tools available for detecting early signs of cancer and assisting in surgeries are primarily limited to human vision, which often cannot discern crucial details in images. This limitation can lead to missed signs of cancer during surveillance and diagnosis as well as challenges in treatment, including the risk of not completely removing all cancerous tissues and the potential need for additional surgeries. The OASIS Hub will address this unmet need for precision oncology demonstrating exemplars in brain and upper gastrointestinal tract cancers (amongst the most deadly kind) and breast cancer (one of the most prevalent).
“Our hub aims to develop low-cost, portable devices to identify and visualise cancer using optical, acoustic and photoacoustic imaging. Bringing together partners from academia, industry and the NHS, this initiative aims to accelerate the development and clinical application of these technologies,” said Professor Sarah Bohndiek from the Cavendish Laboratory, Group Leader at the Cancer Research UK Cambridge Institute and Co-Director of the OASIS. “It will facilitate clinical trials and create new datasets, ultimately striving to make effective and less invasive interventions accessible to all in the UK.”
Supported by an overall £118 million investment, including £54 million from the UKRI Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), it is one of the five revolutionary healthcare tech projects to be launched. Other projects benefiting from the investment range from robotic clothing to the development of new approaches for drug administration to treat conditions like high blood pressure, diabetes, and asthma. The investment also aims to speed up drug development, reduce the time required to bring new drugs to market, and overcome barriers to using mesenchymal stem cells for tissue regeneration and bone repair.
“The five new hubs bring together a wealth of expertise from across academia, industry and charities to improve population health, transform disease prediction and diagnosis, and accelerate the development of new interventions,” said EPSRC Executive Chair Professor Charlotte Deane.
“They represent an exciting range of adventurous techniques and approaches that have great potential to improving the lives of millions of people here in the UK and across the world.”
Each hub will deliver a world-leading research programme focused on advancing and developing novel engineering and physical sciences research.
To ensure their research has maximum impact, each hub will work with patients, people with lived experience and health professionals.
They will work with a wide range of partners including the NHS, charities such as Age UK and Cancer Research UK, pharmaceutical companies and small and medium-sized enterprises, with 131 partners providing £64 million of cash and in-kind support in addition to the £54 million EPSRC investment.
Image: An example of imaging using near infra-red light cameras to highlight vasculature in the human placenta beyond the capabilities of the naked eye. Credit: UCL