52 North Health secures £1 million Seed investment

52 North Health, a transformative medical device company based in Cambridge, has been awarded $1.4 million in additional funding to accelerate development of NeutroCheck to improve quality of life for patients on chemotherapy who are at risk of neutropenic sepsis, in conjunction with Macmillan Cancer Support and the UK Sepsis Trust.

Neutropenic sepsis (NS), which kills three people across England and Wales each day, is the first medical indication in which 52 North is aiming to use its game-changing platform technology, through its NeutroCheck device.

Due to the fatality risk associated with NS, all patients undergoing chemotherapy who feel unwell are currently told to go directly to A&E, before being given strong precautionary antibiotics and undergoing a full blood test, with half of patients subsequently found not to be at-risk. All that patients have at present to influence this decision is a thermometer – yet it’s widely known that temperature alone is a very poor discriminator of sepsis.

NeutroCheck is a small, portable device which assesses a patient’s risk at home through a blood finger-prick, helping doctors to accurately triage patients, with those at-risk prioritised, and allowing those not at-risk to stay home or instead be seen in the community.

SBRI Healthcare, the NHS England-funded initiative supported by the Academic Health Science Network, awarded 52 North initial Phase 1 funding in January 2021, and has now followed through with the Phase II award of $1.4m. 52 North was ranked highest out of all applicants in both phases of the award process, and credits this to their diverse and multi-disciplinary team.

Co-founded by a cancer doctor, patients have been at the heart of the product development process from the beginning, and 52 North is partnering with key charities Macmillan Cancer Support and the UK Sepsis Trust, to ensure that doctors, nurses, allied health professionals, patients and carers feed into the product’s journey.

The 52 North platform enables both soluble and insoluble (cellular) biomarkers to be detected from a single biological specimen using a low-cost simple-to-use device, and is supported by an app to help inform and empower patients.

The funding will be used to finalise development of the NeutroCheck device, transfer to manufacturing and carry out its clinical usability trials.

Dr Saif Ahmad, co-founder of 52 North, said: “We are privileged to have the support of the SBRI Healthcare programme and are committed to working with our world-leading collaborators to deliver on our ambitions to improve the care of cancer patients.”

Tanya Humphreys, Macmillan Cancer Support’s Head of Innovation Partnerships, added: “Neutropenic sepsis is a life-threatening condition and managing the risks can be very stressful for people with cancer, who are already dealing with all the challenges that a diagnosis can bring. But good care is a lifeline, not a luxury, and giving patients the tools to better manage their care can be a key component to helping to improve their quality of life.”

Dr Ron Daniels, Founder and Joint CEO of The UK Sepsis Trust, said: “Current inefficiencies in the pathway for managing patients at risk of neutropenic sepsis contribute both to delays in life-saving intravenous antibiotics and unnecessary usage in patients who do not need them. Improving this pathway will not only enable us to save lives but also contribute to reducing the burden of antimicrobial resistance.”

With interest from multiple NHS trusts, Addenbrooke’s Hospital, Cambridge will be the main site for the clinical trials. The hospital’s Divisional Director for Cancer Services, Dr Hugo Ford noted “Addenbrooke’s Hospital is motivated to improve care for patients with cancer and is delighted to be supporting this project.”

About 52 North Health

52 North Health is a dynamic and ambitious Cambridge-based start-up, founded in 2018 with a mission to bring healthcare closer to people through affordable, cutting-edge technology. NeutroCheck is an innovative point-of-care medical device in development by 52 North Health with the potential to significantly improve safety and quality of life for cancer patients. For more information, visit www.52north.health.

About Macmillan Cancer Support
At Macmillan, we give people with cancer everything we’ve got. If you’re diagnosed, your worries are our worries. We will move mountains to help you live life as fully as you can. And we don’t stop there. We’ll do whatever it takes. For information, support or just someone to talk to, call 0808 808 00 00 or visit macmillan.org.uk.

About The UK Sepsis Trust

Founded by Dr Ron Daniels in 2012, The UK Sepsis Trust’s mission is to save lives from sepsis and improve outcomes for survivors. It does this by educating healthcare professionals, raising public awareness, providing free support for those affected by this devastating condition and instigating political change. The Trust works to protect and empower people by enabling the prevention of severe infection and the treatment of sepsis, while helping to ensure antibiotics are used responsibly. Please visit www.sepsistrust.org for more information.

Media Enquiries: Please direct any media enquiries to Umaima Ahmad, 52 North Health co-founder & CEO: [email protected].

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