Prothea Technologies is a spinout company from the Universities of Edinburgh and Bath developing technology that promises to ‘see and treat’ diseased lung tissue in one hospital visit.
Lung cancer is the third most common cancer in the UK, and nine out of ten patients do not survive more than ten years.
Currently, patients with suspected early-stage lung cancer undergo screening tests with follow-up scans and biopsies of suspicious tissue. This approach can be slow and can often be inaccurate.
Prothea’s innovations include a fibreoptic endoscope that allows biopsies to be visualised and tissue taken through a tiny catheter and an ultrafast imaging and data capture tool that offers live insights into the molecular makeup of the lesion. This will be combined with a technology that removes the cancerous tissue, making it easier to rapidly spot disease and treat it in the same procedure.
The team behind Prothea say their technology could alleviate hospital pressures and improve patient outcomes by enabling lung biopsy, diagnosis and treatment to be carried out in a single hospital visit.
The ambitious spinout is the result of over 10 years of hard work and collaboration between the Universities of Edinburgh, Bath, Dundee and Durham, alongside NHS Lothian and Heriot-Watt University. Technologies have been developed with support from leading organisations including UK Research and Innovation, the Wellcome Trust and Cancer Research UK.
Co-founder and Chief Science and Medical Officer of Prothea and Chair of Molecular Imaging and Healthcare Technology at the Institute for Regeneration and Repair, Professor Kev Dhaliwal said:
Collaborations like this demonstrate that universities working together can drive innovation and the economy to ensure the UK stays ahead of the curve on the global tech stage.
We are fortunate to be able to take advantage of the unique benefits Scotland can offer as a location for healthcare research- using real-world data and the collaborative opportunities that exist between the NHS, UK academia, and industry.
Prothea was being supported by Edinburgh Innovations (EI), the University of Edinburgh’s commercialisation service. Dr Barbara Blaney, EI’s Staff Enterprise Team Manager said:
I am delighted that we have been able to support Prothea Technologies with a dedicated Deal Team comprising the breadth of expertise needed to spin out a successful company. The Deal Team provided a forum that gave all parties involved an awareness of the critical pathway and enabled quick and painless progression towards company formation and investment.
The company launched with a €12M Series A Round in April 2024, co-led by Earlybird Venture Capital and Mérieux Equity Partners, with participation from NRW Bank and Old College Capital, the University’s in-house venture investment fund.
The University of Edinburgh Centre for Inflammation Research
