University spinout Awen Oncology has secured a substantial equity investment from the Development Bank of Wales and Start Codon to further develop a range of breakthrough drugs that target a variety of cancers.
This brings the total funds raised by Awen Oncology to over £1 million.
Originally founded with a Cancer Research UK grant and based at Wales’ first dedicated science park, M-SParc in Gaerwen, Awen Oncology is a spinout of Bangor University and Cardiff University.
The therapeutics startup was set up by Dr Ramsay McFarlane, Dr Jane Wakeman and Professor Andrea Brancale, a world leader in computational medicinal chemistry.
The Development Bank has made a six-figure equity investment alongside a further six-figure investment from Start Codon, a specialist life science venture builder. Start Codon will also support Awen Oncology through its innovative ‘START’ Programme, designed to nurture early-stage companies and increase their chances of success.
Awen Oncology also has financial backing from Cancer Research UK, Innovate UK and the Welsh Government SMART capital programme. Additionally, the company has been selected for further development through Innovate UK Business Growth, a scale-up programme for pioneering businesses that drive economic development.
The innovative platform developed by Awen Oncology addresses a significant unmet need in oncology, by homing in on previously untargeted human developmental genes that, while dormant in healthy tissues, behave unexpectedly during the onset and progression of cancer.
“Our technology opens up a new space in oncology drug discovery, to treat a range of malignancies, including rare cancers that currently have no effective treatment options,” said CEO Dr McFarlane.
“We are confident that the combined backing of the Development Bank and Start Codon, alongside the universities and M-Sparc, means that we now have the support to fast-track our innovative science into a successful global commercial venture that could help treat cancers.”
Dan Rooke, co-founder and chief operating officer at Start Codon said: “Awen Oncology is a really exciting company, with a game-changing technology that we believe has the power to unlock new cancer treatments and drastically improve patient outcomes.
“We are delighted to invest alongside our friends at the Development Bank of Wales – a first for Start Codon – and are looking forward to helping the Awen team to develop their technology and grow the company into a leader in the cancer therapeutics space.”