The world of research and innovation in the city of Manchester is set to get a boost after The University of Manchester (UoM), Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust (MFT), and a German technology company launched a strategic partnership that will build on the city’s reputation as a hub of world-class health research.
The partnership will focus on three specific strands of research:
- The integration of different diagnostic data types
- Predictive biomarkers for early cancer detection
- Improving testing for infectious diseases and establishing a more well-rounded understanding of how the body reacts to infection
Opening the event celebrating the launch of the collaboration, Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, said: “Greater Manchester has a history of backing itself to go where we want to go – this partnership has the ability to change lives and make us a major global player.”
Also speaking at the event, Professor Rick Body, Honorary Consultant in Emergency Medicine and Group Director of Research and Innovation at MFT, said: “Research and Innovation improves the care we deliver to our patients. Ensuring that we have the new technology that’s fit-for purpose can only happen through a culture of partnering with industry.
“This framework will further streamline and accelerate our joint projects and will allow us to design and deliver research that will really make a difference in the NHS and benefit our diverse population.”
The agreement supplements the already extremely healthy research infrastructure present In Manchester at the moment – the city’s NIHR Biomedical Research Centre and NIHR Clinical Research Facility were recently renewed for another five years with improved funding.
Echoing this, Vice-Dean for Research and Innovation at UoM, Professor Neil Hanley, said the partnership will uplift the already “evermore impressive research and innovation powerhouse” in Manchester.
He added: “We have an excellent pipeline of talent which will prosper under this agreement, adding another dimension to the world-leading life sciences and experimental medicine already taking place in the city and at our University.”
