Ground-breaking research launches into patient experience of cell therapies

University of Birmingham researchers, with industry partners including health technology companies Dignio and Datatrial, have been awarded £1.1 million by UK Research & Innovation (UKRI)'s Innovate UK, to investigate patients' experience of cell and gene therapies. The funding has been provided as part of the Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund's Medicines Manufacturing programme. Cell and gene therapies offer ground-breaking opportunities for the treatment of disease and injury. As therapies of this kind are so new, the impact upon patients receiving them has not yet been studied - until now. The PROmics study will be led by Melanie Calvert, Professor of Outcomes Methodology and Director of the Centre for Patient Reported Outcomes Research (CPROR) at the University of Birmingham , and will use state-of-the-art technology to assess the effect of novel cell therapies on both patient symptoms and quality of life. Due to begin later this month, the project is a joint venture between the Midlands & Wales Advanced Therapy Treatment Centre (MW-ATTC) , CPROR and Dignio, a Norwegian remote health monitoring company, which is responsible for developing the technology. The company carries out its UK operations from the University of Birmingham Enterprise business incubator, and specifically located its UK operations at the heart of the Birmingham Health Partners ecosystem, which accelerates patient access to innovative medicines and technologies.