September 2016

The Department of Health has awarded Birmingham £12m to help advance research into inflammatory diseases.

The funding from the National Institute of Health Research  (NIHR) for the Birmingham BRC in Inflammation combines our world-class strengths in immunology and inflammation research and extensive experimental medicine infrastructure. This will support a five-year programme between the NHS and University as core partners of Birmingham Health Partners (BHP) to better understand and treat a range of debilitating diseases for patients in Birmingham and beyond.

Professor David Adams, Head of the College of Medical and Dental Sciences, Director of Birmingham Health Partners and the new Birmingham NIHR BRC comments; “We are delighted that the NIHR have funded a Biomedical Research Centre in inflammatory disease in Birmingham.  We will build a centre of excellence that will allow us to take scientific discoveries through into new treatments for patients with inflammatory and autoimmune joint, muscle, bowel and liver diseases.

“Chronic inflammatory diseases such as arthritis, colitis and liver diseases are increasingly common and a major cause of suffering and early death.  In Birmingham, we have been researching the underlying processes behind these diseases for many years.  This award will enable the University and University Hospitals Birmingham to continue to develop the facilities and teams to help better understand and treat these disabling diseases.”

Through this funding, leading NHS clinicians and top universities throughout the UK  will benefit from new world class facilities and support services built by the five-year funding package – the largest ever investment into health research.

University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust and the University of Birmingham are one of 20 NHS and University partnerships across England, who have each been awarded funding through the National Institute for Health Research, boosting growth in cities across the country.

Each of the new Biomedical Research Centres will host the development of new, ground-breaking treatments, diagnostics, prevention and care for patients in a wide range of diseases like cancer and dementia.

ENDS

For more information please contact Luke Harrison, Communications Manager for Health Sciences, on +44 (0) 121 4145134. Out of hours please call +44 (0) 7789 921165 or email [email protected]

AltaBioscience announces UKAS accreditation of new ‘hormone fingerprint’ test: application as an aid to diagnosis of adrenal cancer

A new analytical test has been launched in the UK that provides sensitive, specific and efficient predictive analysis of a rare form of cancer from a simple urine sample. The ACC steroid analysis service will be marketed by Birmingham-based AltaBioscience, which has an exclusive licence on this patented technology from the University of Birmingham.

The steroid profiling test is expected to improve diagnosis for adrenocortical carcinoma (ACC), a highly aggressive type of cancer of the adrenal glands, which manufacture and control the level of steroid hormones in the body.

Early diagnosis is critical for people with ACC: there are few treatment options and the 5-year survival drops from 65% of those diagnosed in the early stages of disease to less than 10% of those diagnosed at the later stages¹.

The test is a significant development on the current diagnostic procedures, which rely on CT/MRI imaging or tissue biopsy – both of which are time-consuming and costly, and rely on indicators that can be ambiguous. The new test accurately quantifies up to 32 steroid hormones and metabolites in urine, delivering a ‘hormone fingerprint’ which is then compared to a comprehensive database containing profiles from patients with benign and malignant adrenal disease.

This comparison with the reference database provides a detailed picture of urinary steroid metabolites profiles as biomarkers of Adrenal Cortical Carcinoma (ACC) resulting in a report detailing probability of malignancy. This test is a non-invasive analysis supporting clinicians in ACC diagnosis and quickly signposts the need for treatment.   The database was developed by Professors Wiebke Arlt and Paul Stewart from the University’s Centre for Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism, who identified a set of urinary markers which can differentiate adrenocortical carcinomas (ACC) from adrenocortical adenomas (ACA).

Professor Wiebke Arlt commented: “Urine steroid analysis delivers a detailed steroid fingerprint of adrenal tumours and can help determine whether the tumour is harmless or a cancer. This test has several advantages over existing methods, as it is easy, non-invasive and radiation-free. I am delighted that this test, developed in the University’s Institute of Metabolism and Systems Research, is now available in the clinical setting for the earlier and more effective diagnosis of Adrenal Cancer.”

Marion Peak, Director of Operations at Alta Bioscience commented: “Until now this test has only been available to researchers and clinical research organisations. However our urinary steroid analysis service, which includes the more specific ACC steroid testing, is now accredited to ISO 17025:2005,and we are delighted to be able to offer it more widely to clinicians who are at the frontline of patient care.”

The licence granted by the University of Birmingham allows Alta Bioscience to commercialise and market the steroid profiling test globally.