SBRI – Cancer: Screening, Earlier Diagnosis & Faster Diagnosis

Cancer affects more than one in 3 of us in our lifetimes. The UK already has high survival rates. Better screening and diagnosing cancer earlier and faster will further improve this.

Since the early 1990s, the incidence rates of all cancers in the UK have increased by 12%. In 2014, there were 357,000 new cases of cancer diagnosed. By 2035, there will be an estimated 500,000 people diagnosed with cancer in the UK each year.

While more than half of people receiving a cancer diagnosis will now live 10 years or more, there is more that could be done to improve patient outcomes and long-term quality of life.

A new national Small Business Research Initiative (SBRI) Healthcare competition is being launched by NHS England in partnership with the Academic Health Science Networks (AHSNs) to find innovative new products and services. The projects will be selected primarily on their potential value to the health service and on the improved outcomes delivered for patients.

NHS England is to invest in new innovative ideas to:

• transform cancer screening
• enable earlier and faster diagnosis of cancer

The competition is open to single companies or organisations from the private, public and third sectors, including charities. The competition will run in two phases:

• Phase 1 is intended to show the technical feasibility of the proposed concept. The development contracts placed will be for a maximum of 6 months and up to £100,000 (inc. VAT) per project
• Phase 2 contracts are intended to develop and evaluate prototypes or demonstration units from the more promising technologies in Phase 1.

Only those projects that have completed Phase 1 successfully will be eligible for Phase 2.

Successful applicants can receive up to £100,000 of funding for phase one (feasibility) and up to £1 million for phase two (development) for solutions that match the needs of the NHS.