Advanced Oncotherapy on track to treat first patient next year

Advanced Oncotherapy PLC (LON:AVO) chief executive Nicolas Serandour said the company remained on course to treat its first patient with its next-generation proton therapy system for cancer by the end of 2020.

Earlier this week, investors were told the construction phase to on the facility, on London’s Harley Street, was complete.

It means the focus now is on the verification and validation of its LIGHT technology, which delivers the treatment.

Work is currently being carried out at AVO’s site at Daresbury in Cheshire.

Key parts ready for delivery 

So, component parts such as side-coupled drift tube linacs and coupled-cavity linacs are due for delivery there between now and the early fourth-quarter. Linacs are linear accelerators, which force particles to travel in straight lines.

“The company expects that by the end of 2019 all of the accelerating structures and hardware required for the treatment room will be delivered to the Daresbury site,” investors will be told at AVO’s annual meeting later Thursday.

“In parallel, at the company’s Geneva testing site, the company continues to make progress on improving the performance reliability of the LIGHT system.”

At the same time, the treatment room is being prepared to receive the proton beam kit, while advanced software is being developed that will ensure the optimal performance of the technology.

AVO CEO Serandour added: “With the initial hardware manufacturing process and technical design now validated, we remain committed to completing the verification and validation needed to ensure first patient treatment by the end of 2020.

“It is essential that this verification work is completed to the highest specifications to ensure a smooth journey towards regulatory clearance and wider commercial launch of the LIGHT system around the world.”

Work of ADAM 

The technology is based on work by ADAM, which AVO bought in 2013 from CERN – the world’s largest particle physics lab that built the Hadron collider.

The major plus point of proton therapy for cancer is that it can pinpoint tumours more precisely than traditional radiation treatment, which means less damage to surrounding healthy tissues.

Proton therapy facilities have traditionally been pricey and large, requiring a space the size of a football pitch to run.

But AVO thinks it has solved that problem, and LIGHT is being built to fit in the basement of the Harley Street townhouse.

Story by ProactiveInvestors