cancer test

How Flow Cytometry Assists in The Detection of Cancer

Scientist have discovered tumors in the bones of mummies in ancient Egypt and references to the disease have been found in manuscripts from that time suggesting that cancer has been a part of human existence dating back to around 3000BC. Ancient Egyptian textbooks on trauma surgery describe what looks to be cases of breast cancer and there is reference to the disease being untreatable.

Since then, we have come a long way in the detection and treatment of cancer, with advances like the Pap Smear and mammograms leading to much earlier diagnosis and treatments such as hormone therapy and chemotherapy playing a major role in the treatment of cancer.

 

What is Flow Cytometry?

One technological advancement is flow cytometry, an analytical tool which assists medical professionals in the diagnosis, classification and management of cancer. According to the National Cancer Institute, flow cytometry is ‘A method of measuring the number of cells in a sample, the percentage of live cells in a sample, and certain characteristics of cells, such as size, shape, and the presence of tumor markers on the cell surface. The cells are stained with a light-sensitive dye, placed in a fluid, and passed in a stream before a laser or other type of light. The measurements are based on how the light-sensitive dye reacts to the light.’

Bone marrow, lymph nodes and blood samples are all examined and tested using a flow cytometry machine. This has proven to be the most accurate way of telling lymphomas from non-cancer diseases in the lymph nodes.

 

How Does It Work?

A sample of cells from a biopsy, cytology specimen or blood specimen is treated with antibodies. These antibodies will only stick to the cells that have the antigens that fit with it.  These cells are then passed through a laser beam and the cells with the new antibodies will give off a light which can then be measured and analyzed by a computer.

 

What Do the Results Show?

Once the cells have been analyzed, the lab will look at whether the cells in the sample all have the same substance on their surface.  This would suggest that they all come from a single abnormal cell which is likely to indicate the presence of cancer. Alternatively, the discovery of several different cell types with a variety of allergens is likely to indicate that there is no cancer present.

As well as this, flow cytometry can also measure the amount of DNA in cancer cells (referred to as ploidy). Cells are treated with a special dye that in turn triggers a reaction with the DNA. If there is a normal amount of DNA, then the cells are said to be diploid but if the amount is abnormal the cells are described as aneuploid. Aneuploid cancers tend to grow and spread faster than diploid ones.

As well as this, flow cytometry can also be used to measure the percentage of cells in a sample that are in a stage of cell division referred to as the S-phase. The cancer is more likely to be growing faster and more aggressively the more cells that are in the S-phase.

health and fintech

Can Fintech Teach The Healthcare Industry Anything New?

As healthcare costs continue to rise, and the amount of spending on prescription drugs also spirals, more patients are seeking better, faster and more convenient ways to pay for their treatment.

The healthcare industry as a whole has not yet developed a way of turning its ageing IT core into fast, effective payment systems that look to the retail industry for inspiration and ideas.

Could Fintech hold the answer to greater success and a slicker patient experience?


Fintech and Healthcare

Fintech incorporates a range of new technologies that are at the helm of an ever innovating finance sector, some of which include mobile payments, online investment services, and even blockchain, cryptocurrency and machine based learning that can help the medical industry to develop and innovate.

Companies across the globe are now developing more innovative ways of paying, banking and managing wealth that consider smartphone and device use, the IoT and APIs.

Developers consider speed, ease of use and security to be the biggest priorities, but their greatest challenge is making sure consumer expectations are met.

These are also challenges the healthcare industry faces too.


Are there connections to be made between Fintech and Healthcare?

Finance and healthcare are both founded on a notion that their consumers will opt for a provider that they can become loyal to, depending on its offerings and benefits. Patient financing, professional and fast payment systems and healthcare reimbursement methods are a top priority for many patients seeking treatment that they must pay for.

Both banking and healthcare have offered a service based on fees which can help draw consumers in, because they aren’t as concerned with long term outcomes, as they’re being paid regularly.

Healthcare has operated in a similar way to banks, in that patients may take out loans or need to utilize credit to pay for their treatment, but over the last few years rising inflation and a change in what consumers expect has altered its outlook from volume to value.

Delivery systems within the healthcare service have to now try and persuade patients to stay with them, and that means they’ve got to offer very high quality for a low fee. There has been a hesitancy within the industry to embrace new technology, that just isn’t there within finance and banking and overcoming this will be key to whether the health industry sinks or swims.


Can Fintech offer anything to the healthcare industry?

Healthcare providers are clear that patient safety, quality of service and long term success outcomes is their clear priority. Now they also have to consider their consumer’s experience, just as retail enterprises do. 

Consumers are becoming choosier, opting for quality of care over how close to them a hospital actually is, when deciding on where to seek care. They’re now more willing to shop around for who provides them with their care and any procedures they may need.

It’s estimated that around eighty percent of patients would like to be able to pay their bills digitally, while just under seventy percent want to use online tools to clear bills. However, in contrast, just under eighty percent of healthcare providers are using paper billing to cover their financial transactions. This will need to change considerably.

Fintech can help to power the analytics and security needed to make the move to digital transactions a success and as time goes on healthcare providers are going to find themselves in a tight race to secure the custom of patients who need care, if they do not have the right digital financial management systems in place.

The industry needs to move faster and look to innovate from Fintech giants if it is to adapt and move with the times.

Blood Pressure

Successful Blood Pressure Diagnosis App Launched By Man Who Used Method To Cure His Own Condition

 

A patient whose doctor was unable to identify the cause of his high blood pressure has launched a 5-star rated app that could transform the treatment of hypertension, after his data analysis method allowed him to cure his own condition.

The BP Owl app was developed by data analyst Cameron Elliot from Shorecross, Manchester, UK, who was advised by his GP to cut his salt intake after being diagnosed with high blood pressure at 180/95mmHg in 2016, putting him at high risk of a heart attack or stroke.

Knowing he already ate a low salt diet, Cameron instead began recording his blood pressure readings daily and mapping these against his levels of stress, sleep quality, salt intake, weight, physical activity and other factors to see what else could be behind his health problem. A month later he put his results into a graph and the cause “jumped out of the screen”. It was clear that stress and poor sleep were causing his condition, so he took action and within a month his blood pressure was in the healthy range. 

Using what he has learnt, Cameron has now launched BP Owl, a revolutionary five-star rated app that uses his data analysis method to provide people with a super simple way to identify what aspects of their lifestyle are causing their blood pressure to spike, so they can focus their efforts on addressing those factors. 

High blood pressure is the world’s biggest killer, causing an estimated 10.4m deaths per year¹, yet with so many potential lifestyle causes it can be increasingly difficult for time-stretched health professionals² to get to the bottom of the root cause for individual patients.

The condition – which affects one in four people in the UK³ – is responsible for at least half of all heart attacks and strokes, and is a major risk factor for chronic kidney disease, heart failure and dementia. Treating hypertension costs the NHS a staggering £2.1 billion per year³ and the number of people searching Google for help and advice has more than doubled in the UK over the last 10 years⁴.

For every 10 people who have been diagnosed with high blood pressure, it is estimated that a further seven are unaware that they have it³.

Since launching in March, BP Owl has already had more than 23,000 downloads of its BP Owl and BP Healthy apps via word-of-mouth. The BP Owl app is a diagnostic app that uses data analysis to uncover what is causing an individual’s high blood pressure, while BP Healthy helps users lower their numbers through small changes to diet, exercise, sleep, relaxation and other lifestyle factors.

BP Owl has also been working with respected cardiovascular specialist, Dr Lutz Kraushaar, from Bielefeld University in Germany, who will be partnering with the organisation on various research projects and experiments to uncover the simple changes people can make to impact their blood pressure the most.

BP Owl founder, Cameron, who now maintains an average blood pressure of just under 120/80mmHg, commented: “High blood pressure is often referred to as the ‘silent killer’ because there are no symptoms, which can make a diagnosis both scary and quite hard to accept. 

“In my case, the doctor advised me to reduce my salt intake, perhaps because that advice had worked on other patients in the past. However, everyone’s condition is different and I knew that this wouldn’t make any difference to me as I already ate a low salt diet – which made me feel even more powerless against my condition.

“I was confident that if I got enough data I’d have a good chance of discovering what was behind it though and within a month of daily recording I was able to pull a graph that showed clearly how my blood pressure spiked on days where I’d reported having a poor sleep and feeling particularly stressed. I was then able to isolate those factors and take steps to address them, which brought my blood pressure under control. At this point I knew I had to let others know about my method.”

Cameron initially tried to pass on his knowledge by launching a supportive Facebook community and website, but while people liked the sound of his idea, the feedback was always the same – that it’s too complicated to follow in practice. That’s where the idea for an app came from.

“The whole focus of the app is on simplicity and ease-of-use,” says Cameron. “All you have to do is record what you have done and how you feel, and the app will do the rest. Within 30 days you’ll have a definitive answer for what is causing your high blood pressure and can take steps to address it. Our goal is to help people take their health into their own hands – we want to give people the tools they need to beat high blood pressure naturally.”

Dr Kraushaar, who has a doctorate in Health Science and has been working with BP Owl, commented: “BP Owl is a big step towards personalized preventive medicine, something which doctors don’t currently have the capacity to provide.

“Currently, the medical profession relies on clinical trials as the foundation of its advice to patients. However, trials typically test a single intervention and generalise their conclusions based on averages, even though, in reality, it’s likely that the intervention worked really well for some people, less well for others and not at all – or even negatively – for a small number.

“BP Owl turns this method on its head in favour of the user, so that rather than being limited by a one-size-fits-all intervention, the individual can trial-and-error multiple options until they find what’s most effective for them. 

“Clinical trials are so important in helping us to narrow down the basket of potentially helpful interventions, but it has long been clear that the last mile between medical trials and the individual patient needs a bridge. It’s fantastic to see a new breed of personalised tech solutions coming through to help us bridge that gap and BP Owl is a wonderful example of this in the ecosystem of blood pressure and hypertension.”

Giovanna Fritz from Lemington, Warwickshire, commented: “I love the BP Owl app. My doctor said I needed to lose some weight, exercise more, reduce my salt, consume less fat in my diet – in other words do everything! It left me really confused. I used the BP owl app and after 20 days it showed me how much higher my numbers are on my poor sleep days compared to days with good sleep. I now go to bed at 10.30pm each night, don’t have my phone in my bedroom and listen to a relaxing CD. I sleep so much better now and my BP has dropped from 140 / 82 mmHg to 122 / 82 mmHg.”

You can download the BP Owl app for the iPhone from the App Store here and an Android app is currently in development. The BP Healthy app is available here for people wanting to drill down on their eating and activity habits.

You can find out more about BP Owl via the website here.

blood tests

The Future of Diagnosis – Are Blood Tests Soon to be a Thing of The Past?

 

By Wesley Baker, CEO of ANCON Medical

The history of medicine is haunted by stories of the archaic practices from days gone by – whether that be the use of leeches, at the relatively harmless end, or the brutality of trepanning to treat headaches. There are undoubtedly procedures used today that in 50 years will inspire the same incredulity that we feel looking back today.

Chemotherapy is often the best option for patients diagnosed with cancer, and yet it is fairly widely accepted that it is often a case of hoping it kills the cancer before the patient – it is by no means a selective treatment. Things are getting better, with cancer treatments becoming more specialised and less damaging to healthy tissue but there is a long way to go.

One of the most ubiquitous procedures in medicine is the blood test, used for diagnosis, tracking diabetes and a myriad of other applications. The blood is almost always taken with a needle through a venous draw – something that is not at the best of times particularly easy or pleasant. Other blood extraction methods such as finger pricks can’t provide the quantity necessary and besides often lead to misleading results as red blood cells break down during the relative trauma of squeezing a drop from the end of your finger.

At times when blood tests are especially vital, when patients are undergoing intense treatment, is when needles become least effective. There is a myriad of stories of people having to go through almost constant and often traumatic blood tests drawn from veins during treatment and diagnosis. Chemotherapy can cause the collapse of veins in cancer patients as doctors try to keep track of liver and kidney function that are often damaged by the treatment.

The vast majority of current diagnosis methods rely on the use of these kinds of blood tests and invasive biopsies to accurately diagnose serious illnesses. These illnesses rely on early diagnosis for survivability, with survival rates varying from 90% to 10%. So clearly there is significant value in regularly having these tests, but with them being so unpleasant this rarely happens.

It is estimated that around 5% of people have a phobia of blood, and that 15% have a phobia of needles. These figures are also likely to be higher than reported as people with the phobias are much more likely to avoid visiting the doctor altogether. It hardly surprising given the unnatural nature of having to have sharp objects put into your arm by someone you rarely know, especially given the horror stories of being repeatedly jabbed while a doctor or nurse tries to find a vein.

This reluctance to get diagnosed is likely having a marked impact on survival rates. Research that we conducted at ANCON Medical showed that around 50% of the UK has not visited a doctor in up to five years with 4.3million avoiding the doctor despite currently suffering from serious symptoms. While a fair portion of this can be put down to a lack of time or the doctor’s opening hours conflicting with the work day, the invasive and painful tests don’t help matters.

If these tests could be performed non-invasively and without the use of blood or needles it seems more than likely that more people will visit the doctor and take screening and diagnostic tests. This has been the ‘holy grail’ in diagnosis for a number of years especially if the tests can be made less expensive and time consuming than current methods.

The amount of time it takes to carry out these tests and for results to come back from the clinic creates acute anxiety for patients in what can already be an incredibly stressful time. Recent figures showed that NHS is currently struggling to meet the targets it sets itself in terms of how long it takes for cancer patients to start their treatment. Currently 76.9% of cancer patients are starting treatment within 62 days of their urgent GP referral.

One of the obvious solutions to these wait times would be to make use of innovation that is coming through to speed up and centralise data analysis. Key to this will be the use of Artificial Intelligence and machine learning technology, allowing doctors and medical professionals to spend their time with patients rather than poring over reems of test results.

Here at ANCON Medical we are currently developing an innovative technology based on Nanoparticle Biomarker Tagging that can diagnose lung cancer through a patient’s breath in as little as 10 minutes. We hope to extend the technology later to include over 400 over diseases and to be able to track organ function other markers that are currently tested through taking blood.

The vast data sets that will be produced by these tests when analysing the biomarker profiles present will then be processed by AI to give the result in the doctor’s surgery or point of care, a vast improvement compared to current methods of sending for results from a laboratory.

Eye

First NHS patient receives Chiesi’s advanced-therapy-medicinal product, Holoclar for moderate-to-severe limbal stem cell deficiency

 

Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust first to provide breakthrough treatment for rare eye condition that can result in blindness.

Chiesi UK today announced that the first NHS funded patient with limbal stem cell deficiency (LSCD) caused by chemical eye burns has been treated with Chiesi’s stem-cell based therapy, the first advanced therapy medicinal product containing stem cells to be approved in the European Union (EU).(1) LSCD is a rare condition that can lead to blindness, and affects just 3.3 out of 100,000 people in the EU.(1)

Chiesi’s stem-cell based therapy is a type of advanced treatment called a ‘tissue engineered product’ which consists of cells taken from the patient’s healthy limbus (at the edge of the cornea) during a biopsy.(2) The cells obtained during the biopsy are then transported to the manufacturing facility at Holostem Terapie Avanzate in Italy, where they are prepared and grown in a unique culture to create a new layer of healthy tissue.(2) After at least 50 days, this layer of healthy tissue is delivered back to the treating hospital and implanted by a surgeon into the damaged eye helping it to heal and repair the damaged corneal surface.(2) In case of a partial bilateral problem, the healthy cells are taken from a spared portion of a patient’s less damaged eye.(2)

In 2017, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) recommended Holoclar as an option for adults with moderate-to-severe LSCD after eye burns, if it is only used to treat one eye and in those who have already had a conjunctival limbal autograft (or there is not enough tissue for a conjunctival limbal autograft or it is contraindicated).(3)

Professor Francisco Figueiredo, Consultant Ophthalmologist at the Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and Professor of Ophthalmology at Newcastle University who treated the first NHS funded patient following NICE approval, said, “In Newcastle we are a leading centre with an international reputation in autologous limbal stem cell transplantation, and our significant scientific research and clinical experience in limbal stem cell deficiency has led to us having proudly performed the first Holoclar treatment on an NHS patient. This operation was the first of a series that may benefit a number of blind patients over the next few years, not only from Newcastle but from across the whole of the UK, helping to restore their sight and comfort”.

Chiesi’s UK Managing Director, Tom Delahoyde commented, “We are delighted that the first patient outside of a clinical trial has received this innovative and breakthrough medicine. This first NHS treatment marks a major milestone for those people with LSCD due to physical or chemical burns and we look forward to many more eligible patients benefiting from such a ground-breaking therapy. Chiesi would like to thank NHS England and the approved Trusts for their support on setting up this new service in the NHS over the last two years and reaching this milestone today.”

LSCD is seriously debilitating condition affecting one or both eyes; left untreated it results in chronic pain, burning, photophobia, inflammation, corneal neovascularisation, stromal scarring and the reduction or complete loss of vision.(4),(5) Chemical and physical ocular burn injuries are thought to be the most common cause of LSCD.(6)

1) European Medicines Agency. First stem-cell therapy recommended for approval in EU; 19th December 2014 [Internet]. Available at www.ema.europa.eu/ema/index.jsp?curl=pages/news_and_events/news/2014/12/news_detail_002239.jsp&mid=WC0b01ac05 8004d5c1 (accessed October 2019)

2) European Medicines Agency. Holoclar Patient information guide. Available at: https://www.medicines.org.uk/emc/rmm/1026/Document (accessed October 2019)

3) NICE Final guidance. Holoclar for treating limbal stem cell deficiency after eye burns. 16th August 2017. [Internet] Available at www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ta467. (accessed October 2019)

4) Rama P, Bonini S, Lambiase A, Golisano O, Paterna P, De Luca M, et al. Autologous fibrin cultured limbal stem cells permanently restore the corneal surface of patients with total limbal stem cell deficiency. Transplantation. 2001;72(9):1478–85

5) Rama P, Matuska S, Paganoni G, Spinelli A, De Luca M, Pellegrini G. Limbal stem-cell therapy and long-term corneal regeneration. N Engl J Med. 2010;363(2):147–55

6) Baylis O, Figueiredo F, Henein C, Lako M, Ahmad S. 13 Years of cultured limbal epithelial cell therapy: A review of the outcomes. J Cell Biochem. 2011;112(4):993–1002

7) Macdonald EC a, Cauchi P a, Azuara-Blanco A, Foot B. Surveillance of severe chemical corneal injuries in the UK. Br J Ophthalmol. 2009;93(9):1177–80

8) European Medicines Agency. Assessment report. Holoclar. Available at: www.ema.europa.eu/en/documents/assessmentreport/holoclar-epar-public-assessment-report_en.pdf. (accessed October 2019).

9) EMC. Holoclar. Summary of Product Characteristics. [Internet]. Available at www.medicines.org.uk/emc/product/8033/smpc (accessed October 2019).

CBD

Why CBD really is the next big thing

 

By Henri Sant-Cassia, CBD Virtue

From the stories appearing about CBD and its near miraculous effects, to the pharmaceutical companies rushing to catch up, it seems everyone is taking about cannabidiol. The buzz around CBD is loud because it can help so many diverse conditions; from cancer and back pain, to anxiety and ADHD, but because it is so new to the UK, it can be hard to separate fact from fiction.

 

What is CBD?

CBD is cannabidiol, one of the two main substances found in cannabis plants. The other, THC, is what gives marijuana its high, and is a psychoactive drug. CBD works on the body, and has no psychoactive effect. CBD was legalised in the UK last year, provided it comes from EU approved plant strains and any THC has been removed. As we’ll see, these guidelines are not always followed.

Once the preserve of Californian hippies, today you’ll find CBD everywhere from the high street to specialised online retailers, and there is a growing lobby who want to see it available on prescription.  Following a Home Office decision to make certain cannabis derived medicines available to patients with “exceptional clinical need”, Home Secretary Sajid Javid admitted that “our position on cannabis-related medicinal products was not satisfactory.”  So CBD is headed for the mainstream.

 

Does CBD live up to the hype?

CBD can help alleviate chronic pain and reduce inflammation. Anthony Atterbury, a decorated West Midlands fireman suffers from Primary Progressive Multiple Sclerosis, and the combination of pain and reduced mobility left him unable to walk or stand.

“It has taken a lot of mental strength to go from leaping up and down ladders to being housebound,” he said. CBD gummies and honey sticks from UK based CBD supplier CBD Virtue have got him back on his feet, after years of trying conventional medicine and a cocktail of painkillers. The company offers pharmaceutical grade, full spectrum CBD.  Today he reports a 70% reduction in pain, and believes that with continued use, he will one day walk again.

Many people are also using CBD to fight cancer and the side effects of treatments like chemotherapy. According to the American Cancer Society, “cannabinoids such as CBD slow growth and/or cause death in certain types of cancer cells growing in lab dishes.”  It can also help with symptoms such as nausea and sleeplessness. Tracy Fyfe has lymphoma, and found that CBD had an immediate effect on her symptoms, “after just one try!”

Overall, both anecdotal evidence and a growing number of clinical trials show that CBD has real potential, and there is no doubt you’ll hear more in the coming months, especially as it’s not just for those with serious illnesses.  A growing number are using it to help them deal with minor ailments and lifestyle needs.

If you work out regularly, CBD is great post workout recovery, and as it’s natural, it has none of the side effects of the typical recovery drinks, pills and powders. Shaun Perry, a boxer, martial artist and weight trainer for 16 years reported that after taking CBD Virtue’s CBD, “I can feel the difference right away, even my sleeping pattern is better.”

For smokers, CBD has been found to reduce cravings, and can help you quit. It has a soothing effect, which has helped people suffering from everything from anxiety to epileptic seizures. As it is considered safe for children, parents are using CBD as an alternative to Ritalin and other ADHD medicines.

 

What makes good CBD?

Not all CBD is created equal.  Plenty of unscrupulous companies are jumping on the bandwagon.  As one of America’s biggest producers, John Merritt, explains; “It’s common to find cheap Chinese CBD, watered down with labels claiming it is high strength, and untested products with no CBD at all in them. It’s the wild west.”

The very best CBD is made in the US from special plant strains with the right genetics, and is gently extracted to preserve all the beneficial chemicals which are naturally present but stripped out by the harsher, industrial extraction used in cheaper products. Look out for full spectrum CBD, and buy from a company that has traceable, tested products.

CBD is available in a bewildering range of products, including creams, oils, tinctures, and edible treats like gummy sweets and honey sticks. Recently, Coca Cola announced they were looking at producing a CBD drink. CBD is also available in many different dosages, and it can be hard to know how much to take, and when. For most people, a daily dose of 10mg to 25mg is ideal, and the best way to take CBD is through an edible product like gummies, honey sticks or a tincture.

CBD will continue to hit the headlines, as ever more effective products become available, and more clinical trials are done to prove its effectiveness.

cannabis

New national study reveals people are still confused about CBD

 

• Nearly a quarter of respondents (22%) think CBD is addictive

• 64% don’t believe it can be sold in shops

• More than 1 in 10 believe it can get you ‘high’

A new study has revealed that many Brits are unaware of the CBD phenomenon and its effects.

CBD, short for cannabidiol, is a chemical compound found in plants from the cannabis family that has no psychoactive effects. Yet, nearly a quarter (21%) of survey respondents believe CBD is illegal and addictive (22%), while 7% believe it can give you ‘the munchies’ – suggesting many still confuse CBD with THC, the psychoactive ingredient in cannabis. Of course, CBD is completely legal and non-addictive and can’t get you high, as 14% of people believe.

Positively, nearly 7 in 10 survey respondents (68%) recognised that CBD has health benefits, with over half (59%) saying they assumed it could help with a medical condition. Additionally, more than 4 in 10 (41%) know it can be prescribed by doctors following former Home Secretary Sajid Javid’s announcement last year that specialist hospital doctors would be able to legally prescribe cannabis-derived medicinal products.

The survey of over 2,000 UK adults was commissioned to discover whether the recent spate of headlines regarding CBD had made a difference to people’s understanding and found that 64% of respondents don’t believe it can be sold in shops.

As a relatively new wellness trend, a report by the World Health Organisation in 2017 found that CBD could possess numerous health benefits to relieve chronic pain, anxiety and insomnia. While the survey uncovered a number of people who recognised these health benefits listed, almost half of the population (48%) reported feeling confused and divided on whether you could refer to CBD as ‘medicine’.

Nicola Webster is from Vape UK and was part of the team behind the research. She said, “It’s a real shame that research into the true potential of cannabis and, in particular, cannabinoids like CBD has been stunted by sociopolitical factors. Our prejudices and fears towards cannabis have been ingrained over many years.

“I believe this has led to the kind of misinformation and confusion we see in the results of our study. It is positive to see that a significant percentage of UK adults recognise that CBD has health benefits. However, it’s also obvious that many people are still conflating CBD with THC. As the industry grows, it’s vital that the correct advice is provided, and more empirical studies are conducted, so that people can make sensible, well informed decisions about how CBD could help with their particular health concern.”

Cycling

Could deaths and serious injuries to cyclists be slashed by fitting bicycles with flashing indicators?

Another call for indicators on bicycles as waving your arm is ‘just not good enough on today’s busy roads’.

That’s the opinion of health and safety experts at Protecting.co.uk a Yorkshire based software-as-a-service (SAAS) company who think that any initiative to make roads safer for cyclists should be applauded. But they concede that this comes up against justified anger from cyclists, who argue that the huge majority of accidents are caused by careless motorists. In most cases motorists ask for the help of  experienced defence lawyers who help them decrease their punishments. It’s clear that a legal initiative, besides other initiatives from companies or NGOs, for making roads safer for cyclists could also be a good option.

“We say that anything that makes a cyclist more visible and ends the curse of the SMIDSY (“Sorry mate, I didn’t see you”) accident has to be a good thing,” says Protecting spokesperson Mark Hall.


Putting cyclists first

RoSPA figures say that 102 cyclists were killed and 18,375 more were injured on British roads in 2016.

The figures tell us that “Almost two thirds of cyclists killed or seriously injured were involved in collisions at, or near, a road junction, with T-junctions being the most commonly involved. Roundabouts are particularly dangerous junctions for cyclists”.

The government’s own statistics show that cyclists are at exceptional risk at road junctions, and are far more likely to suffer injury in an accident.

Protecting argues that flashing indicators would make it far easier for cyclists to signal their intentions while remaining fully in control of their machine.

“Everyone likes to joke about the BMW driver not using his indicator, but they/’re protected by their massive metal box,” says Hall, “Cyclists don’t have that protection.”

It’s an idea borne out of our survey of cyclists who also own cars – that’s people who can see the issue from both sides.

– Some 65% support the use of indicators on bicycles
– And 90% wanted all roads to have cycle paths
– 84% said they fully support a bike MOT
– Crucially, 56% said they did not know if their bike was safe or not and have never had it serviced

One of the less enlightened comments was from Johnny from Leeds: “This is a ludicrous idea – it will weigh down my carbon fibre frame and this will add seconds to my time. If car drivers can’t see me waving my arm before I turn, then perhaps they need to get their eyes tested.”

Others, on the other hand, were more keen on the idea:

Helen, Derbyshire: “Great idea at night. They might even think I’m a motorbike and give me a lot more space.”

Cyclists bite back

Pointing out that a Kickstarter turns up on the internet for a new turn indicator system for cyclists at least once a month – only to disappear without a trace – Phil told us that perhaps the answer doesn’t lie with cyclists at all.

“Bike riders have never been more visible these days. Their bikes are lit up like Christmas trees, and we’re all dressed in hi-visibility gear that’s brighter than the sun.

“Perhaps,” he says, “It’s terrible drivers who are to blame.”

He concedes that some cyclists are “complete idiots who shouldn’t be on the road”, there are even greater numbers who shouldn’t be allowed in cars.

“The stats bear out the fact that motorists just don’t pay enough attention to cyclists, bikers and pedestrians, day after day. We don’t need another gimmick just to make it look like something is being done.”

But Protecting’s Mark Hall says: “Most cyclists want to be seen on the roads, and they know that they need to defend themselves from poor drivers.

“For the sake of beating those SMIDSY types, indicators have got to be a good thing.”

Affectech

AffecTech showcases innovative mental health technology

Affectech
Members of the public and healthcare professionals have tried out innovative wearables technologies for mental health being developed as part of the AffecTech project.

They were able to test the cutting-edge technologies at a special event in Lancaster, UK held to mark Mental Health Awareness Week.

The public engagement event was organised by the Lancaster University team of the AffecTech project – a four-year research initiative that’s developing new digital tools to help people with depression, anxiety and bipolar.

Attendees included professionals from the health and technology sectors, as well as leading mental health charities such as Mind and Anxiety UK.

“This was an enjoyable opportunity for public and professionals to learn more about, and have hands-on experience of new wearable technologies for mental health that we are developing here in Lancaster,” said Corina Sas, Professor of Digital Health at Lancaster University, who also leads the AffecTech project.

Professor Sas said: “Affective disorders, such as stress, depression and bipolar conditions, are estimated to be among the highest ranking causes of disease by 2020. The potential social impact of wearable health devices for people with these disorders is vast because emotional awareness and regulation are invaluable for daily functioning.

“Our project marks a significant shift from current wearable technologies that capture emotional responses that then need interpreting by health professionals, towards low-cost self-help technologies for visualising, exploring and regulating emotions that people may be able to use in their daily lives.”

Coordinated by Lancaster University, the AffecTech project contributes cutting-edge research and development into wearable systems for emotion regulation.

The international project has been gathering momentum, with its research recognised at the prestigious CHI 2019 Human-Computer Interaction Conference, and Designing Interactive Systems DIS 2019 Conference:

Exploring and Designing for Memory Impairments in Depression
http://eprints.lancs.ac.uk/130241/1/Qu_accepted_CHI_19.pdf
https://doi.org/10.1145/3290605.3300740

HCI and Affective Health: Taking stock of a decade of studies and charting future research directions
http://eprints.lancs.ac.uk/130240/1/hci_affective_health.pdf
https://doi.org/10.1145/3290605.3300475

Dynamic Displays at Wrist for Real Time Visualization of Affective Data
http://eprints.lancs.ac.uk/124394/1/DIS_WIP_FINAL.pdf
https://doi.org/10.1145/3197391.3205436

Towards Affective Chronometry: Exploring smart materials and actuators for real-time representations of changes in arousal http://eprints.lancs.ac.uk/132485/1/DIS_Camera_Ready_Final.pdf

The former explores how innovations in personal health technologies could release sufferers from the torment of depression, by logging positive memories and combating memory impairments.

For more information visit: www.affectech.org

Healthy.io Raises �50 Million in Series C Funding and Receives FDA Clearance for Smartphone-Based Test to Diagnose Chronic Kidney Disease

Healthy.io Raises £50 Million in Series C Funding and Receives FDA Clearance for Smartphone-Based Test to Diagnose Chronic Kidney Disease

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Healthy.io Raises £50 Million in Series C Funding and Receives FDA Clearance for Smartphone-Based Test to Diagnose Chronic Kidney Disease

Former Aetna executive Gary Loveman will join the Board of Directors

Today, Healthy.io, the global leader in turning the smartphone camera into a clinical-grade medical device, announced it has received 510(k) clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for its smartphone-based ACR test to be used in the aid of diagnosing chronic kidney disease (CKD), which affects over 35 million Americans. This is the second FDA clearance the company has received. The company also closed a $60 million (£50 million) Series C funding round led by Corner Ventures with participation by Joy Capital and all previous investors: Ansonia Holdings, Aleph, and Samsung NEXT.

The funding round will be used to accelerate Healthy.io’s global expansion and product development. Additionally, the company announced that longtime leader in health care innovation, former executive vice president of Aetna Gary Loveman, Ph.D. will join its Board of Directors.

‘The smartphone has the potential to be the great equalizer of healthcare,’ said Yonatan Adiri, founder and CEO of Healthy.io. ‘To unlock this potential, companies must adhere to the highest clinical standards. Our second FDA clearance and additional funding allows us to expand access to critical tests and care beyond our first 100,000 patients in Europe and Israel, making it a reality for millions of Americans suffering from diabetes and hypertension, who are at risk for chronic kidney disease.”

The FDA clearance designates Healthy.io’s smartphone-based ACR test as substantially equivalent to lab-based testing and authorizes the use of the test by healthcare professionals at any point of care. It makes it possible for any pharmacy, urgent care center, or health clinic to perform the test without investing in a tabletop lab device. In addition, Healthy.io’s solution allows immediate electronic medical record (EMR) connectivity through the automated smartphone scan.

Last year, the company received clearance for its at-home, smartphone-based 10 parameter urinalysis test kit, called Dip.io, that can be used in testing for UTIs or in prenatal care. Next, the company plans to continue the approval process for its ACR test kit for at-home use.

‘Today’s health system doesn’t make it easy for patients to get the care they need. Healthy.io is tackling this problem by meeting patients where they are, on their smartphones, and turning smartphone cameras into a clinical-grade medical device,’ said Michael Eisenberg, general partner at Aleph. ‘We are proud to support a company that can meet the highest FDA standards, while creating products that make life easier and more convenient for patients.’

With the new funding, Healthy.io will continue its product development. The company recently announced a partnership with Boots UK, placing its Dip UTI test kits in hundreds of pharmacies, allowing women to test and treat common UTIs, and announced a new pharmacy evaluation with the National Health Service (NHS) in England.

In the U.S. Healthy.io has worked with Johns Hopkins University and Geisinger Health, publishing strong results for its prenatal care and CKD testing products. To advise its U.S. work, the company has added Gary Loveman to its Board of Directors.

‘Today, too many patients face barriers to care, leading to missed appointments, undiagnosed conditions, and increased visits to the emergency room or hospital. Healthy.io is establishing itself as a leader in a new world of broader, decentralized access to care without compromising on clinical quality,’ said Loveman.

‘With this FDA clearance, Healthy.io adds a critical test to its portfolio in the U.S., which can make ACR testing dramatically more accessible and convenient, leading to a big difference in the management of at-risk populations.’

Loveman was previously the executive vice president of Aetna and president of the health plan’s Consumer Health and Services business. In that role, he led the company’s population health management and consumer engagement strategies, including care management, digital consumer health products, analytics, and data science.

Prior to joining Aetna in 2015, Loveman served as Chairman, CEO, and President of Caesars Entertainment Corporation. During his time at Caesars, Loveman chaired the Business Roundtable’s Health & Retirement Committee. He has also served on numerous boards, including the Board of Trustees at Boston Children’s Hospital and on the Visiting Committee of the M.I.T. Department of Economics. Loveman was an associate professor at the Harvard University Graduate School of Business Administration for nine years and he holds a Ph.D. in economics from M.I.T.  

NHS users want to talk to AI virtual assistants instead of humans

NHS users want to talk to AI virtual assistants instead of humans, according to new research from EBO.ai

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NHS users want to talk to AI virtual assistants instead of humans, according to new research from EBO.ai

Patients reject human conversations in favour of AI interactions.

New research from EBO.ai, the artificial intelligence company optimising customer interactions, has revealed that the majority of NHS users prefer using digital messaging to communicate with the health service about their appointments.

Over three quarters (76%) of NHS users said that they’d be happy to receive an automated reminder from an AI-powered virtual assistant, compared to just 58% who would be happy to be contacted by a human. According to NHS England, missed appointments cost the NHS over £216m each year, as such it’s vital that steps are taken to minimise this cost and ensure GP hours are not wasted.

The research, conducted in partnership with YouGov, showed a general trend towards technology-based communication with the NHS. The figures show that patients, just like most people in society, prefer the convenience and non-intrusive nature of digital messaging channels compared with phone calls and human conversations.

Digital messages were seen as the most effective forms of reminder, as instant messaging becomes more and more central in day to day life. 85% of those who missed an appointment in the last year said they felt a text message it would be an effective reminder, the highest response for any type of communication. Nearly three quarters (70%) of 25-34 year olds felt that an instant message was the most effective way to receive a reminder, whilst nearly two thirds (61%) of 35-44 year olds felt the same.

Over a quarter (29%) felt that a letter was an ineffective way to remind patients about their appointments, with this figure spiking among 18-24 year olds at 48%, showing that the younger generations are leading the move away from more old-fashioned methods of reminder.

This also extends to managing appointments, with more patients under 45 (41%) stating that they’d prefer to cancel an appointment via a digital message, compared with 37% who’d rather make a phone call to the hospital or service provider.

Dr. Gege Gatt, CEO of EBO.ai, comments on the findings:

‘It’s clear that people want to manage their health using the same technology they use to control a huge proportion of their day to day lives. Instant and mobile messaging is a convenient and effective way to engage with patients, and our research shows that they prefer digital interactions to human conversations.’

‘The technology is available now to transform the way the NHS interacts with patients, and these digital forms of communications can be automated using Artificial Intelligence. Sophisticated virtual assistants can manage instant message appointment reminders, appointment amendments and cancellations, and can also deliver detailed insights into patient needs and behaviours.

“NHS trusts up and down the country should be leveraging AI to take administrative burden away from clinical staff and deliver a more satisfactory experience for patients. Not only will this help to improve overall patient care, it will also result in significant cost savings.’

China�s revamped legal framework creates hotbed for tech innovation in health and pharma

China’s revamped legal framework creates hotbed for tech innovation in health and pharma

Nick Beckett, Managing Partner of Beijing Office and Co-Head of Life Sciences & Healthcare Group, CMS

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China’s rapid GDP growth to become the world’s second largest economy is reflected across almost all of its industry sectors, including healthcare. Between 2010 and 2017, China’s healthcare market increased in size by over 200% and the government aims to see this growth continue. Figures published in Healthy China 2030, one of the Chinese government’s flagship healthcare policies, reveal the aim to grow healthcare spending to 8000bn RMB by 2020 and increase this to 16,000bn RMB by 2030.

There are a number of factors which demand and stimulate growth in China’s healthcare sector, China’s move from being a manufacturing-based to a more consumer-based economy being one. An even more significant factor is China’s aging population. By 2050, it is estimated 80% of the world’s elderly will be Chinese.

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Graph: Growth of China’s Healthcare market between 2012 and 2017 and its predicted growth in 2020 and 2030. Source: Open source reports.

Traditionally a lack of robust IP protection was considered as a significant problem for multinationals, as well domestic companies, wanting to enter the healthcare market in China. What’s more it also stunted innovation. However, due to this changing environment, the Chinese government is enacting numerous policies, laws and regulations to continue to encourage the development of their domestic healthcare market.

One such piece of legislation which has attracted significant attention recently is the new Foreign Investment Law (the ‘FIL’). Article 22 of the FIL explicitly protects the IP rights of foreign-related companies in China and prevents forced technology transfers. This is one of the key talking points in the current US-China trade war. Although some in China say the new FIL does not go far enough and some in particular say Article 22 is ineffective in its current form, it will go some way to provide a sense of security to foreign companies who hope to enter the Chinese market.

China has also recently updated their patent regime with the release of a draft amendment to the PRC Patent Law at the turn of the year. As part of China’s healthcare reform, an amendment has been included in this draft law, which provides a 5-year patent extension for innovative drugs. In healthcare in particular, the prospects of the Chinese market is extremely alluring. The introduction of the new FIL and the PRC Patent Law amendment demonstrates the government’s intention of creating a more robust system capable of attracting domestic and international investment.

Around the same time the new FIL was approved, one of China’s key policies involving healthcare appeared to have been dropped. Made in China 2025 (‘MIC 25’) is one of the government’s headline policies which looks to see China become globally dominant in high-tech manufacturing, including high-end equipment and biomedicine. The policy is another key feature in the trade-war. The US argues that China is using unfair subsidies to boost their domestic industry to achieve their MIC 25 goals and this is manipulating the free-market. Li Keqiang, the Premier of China, made no mention of MIC 25 directly in his speech at this year’s plenary session presumably as a concession to the US. However, the substance of his speech made it clear that China will continue to drive their high-tech industries forward and their goals are very much unchanged.

One policy that remains at the forefront of the healthcare sector in China is Healthy China 2030 (HC 30). HC30 makes public health the key consideration in future social and economic developments. On 29 May 2019, the Healthy China Nutrition Union was launched in Beijing. The new union is focussed on bringing partners together across the healthcare sector to improve national health.

Finally, a key area the government is trying to grow in order to reach their goals set out in HC 30 is e-health. With over 750 million smart phone users in China the potential for the e-health market is significant.

Three new pieces of legislation have been introduced in the last year which aim to provide a regulatory framework in this new technology-dependent market. The Measures for the Administration of Internet-based Diagnosis and Treatment, the Measures for the Administration of Internet Hospitals and the Measures for the Administration of Telemedicine were enacted concurrently by the National Health Commission.  Their enactment is an acknowledgement by Beijing of the importance of the emerging e-health sector in China.

China’s internet giants have recognised the new opportunities in the e-health market. Tencent’s Doctorwork has recently merged with Trusted Doctors to create Tencent Trusted Doctors. This company is now the biggest healthcare services platform in China, connecting 440,000 doctors, 10 million patients and more than 30,000 hospitals. According to Sootoo Research Institute, China’s internet healthcare market could be worth as much as RMB 90bn by 2020.

The investment in e-health is not only from domestic companies. There are now numerous Chinese companies in this field collaborating with companies from across the world. XtalPi, is an AI company that stimulates solid compounds to accelerate the clinical testing rounds of R&D. This company has received support from Tencent, Google and Pfizer and is now expanding globally. This is a good example of the MIC 25 goals already being achieved.

The rate of change in China’s healthcare market is unlikely to slow any time soon. The government have made their intentions clear that they are going to expand this sector and provide greater access and higher quality healthcare to the population. The legal framework is providing a base for new industries to emerge and companies to grow in China. Further, developments like the new FIL and Patent Law are encouraging even more foreign investment. China has now become a hotbed for healthcare innovation and it is very likely that a number of significant healthcare developments in the future will come from China.