12 Highlights from 2019 – China, Cancer Trials and Even Better Breath Biopsy
Published on: 31 Dec 2019, under Breath Biopsy
With 2019 coming to a close, we take a look back over an exciting year for Owlstone Medical which has seen some major changes for our Breath Biopsy® platform and breath biomarkers. In case you missed anything, we’ve collected together our highlights from the last year for you to enjoy.
In January, we launched the PAN Cancer Trial in partnership with Addenbrooke’s Hospital and supported by Cancer Research UK. The launch was covered extensively in the press and has been written about in a number of articles and editorials by cancer researcher Balkees Abderrahman.
READ THE ANNOUNCEMENT SEE PRESS COVERAGE READ EDITORIAL
A deal with Renji Hospital in Shanghai became the first venture for Breath Biopsy into China with a project investigating biomarkers to detect lung cancer.
With support from Asthma UK and Innovate UK, we announced a collaboration with the University of Manchester to identify breath biomarkers for asthma diagnostics.
A study by Schleich et al. published this year also revealed new potential breath biomarkers for differentiating asthma types.
We announced an investigation of pulmonary hypertension in partnership with Actelion, part of the Janssen Group.
The launch of EVOC® Probes represented a new direction for Breath Biopsy, unlocking the potential to take a targeted approach to breath analysis.
One of the key benefits of targeted biomarker studies is the ability to understand the biology behind the biomarkers. In our blog, Rianne Fijten, a researcher from Maastricht, considered the importance of understanding the links between biology and biomarkers.
In September we revealed the updated line of Breath Biopsy products, ReCIVA® Breath Sampler and CASPER™ Portable Air Supply.
READ THE ANNOUNCEMENT READ THE BLOG DISCOVER ReCIVA
On LinkedIn, we also spoke to Steph, one of the Engineers about her role in creating the new CASPER:
In 2019 we won the Business Weekly ScaleUP of the Year Award and the Cambridge Independent Science & Technology Life Science Company of the Year. EVOC Probes were also named as one of The Scientist’s Top 10 Innovations of 2019.
SEE AWARDS TOP 10 INNOVATIONS 2019
We’re supporting Cleveland Clinic to establish a Center for Early Detection with an initial project looking to identify the early signs of liver disease.
In our blog we looked at the links between breath biomarkers and liver diseases.
The 3TR consortium is the largest immunology project to be supported by the Innovative Medicine Initiative 2 (IMI2). The project covers seven conditions; systemic lupus erythematosus, rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis, inflammatory bowel disease (including ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease), asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Our work will initially contribute to efforts around asthma and COPD.
An agreement with Thermo Scientific means we’re integrating their Orbitrap GC-MS technology into the Breath Biopsy pipeline improving our ability to detect key disease biomarkers.
In 2019 we hosted the second Breath Biopsy Conference, the program was even larger with more talks and an expert discussion session. Take a look at our blogs to explore the key themes of the conference and what the delegates had to say. You can also find full talks and abstracts on the Breath Biopsy Community. Details of the next conference will be available soon, so register your interest now.
READ THE BLOG WHAT THE DELEGATES SAID VISIT THE COMMUNITY
Breath Biopsy has other applications beyond searching for signs of disease. In 2019 we embarked on two projects relating to environmental exposure, looking at VOC biomarkers for detecting exposure to certain substances. Working with the International Association of Heat and Frost Insulators and Allied Workers (IAHFIAW) we’re investigating factors contributing to the development of mesothelioma, while the EU-funded EPHOR consortium is exploring the exposome with the goal of reducing the disease burden resulting from workplace exposures.
