Barts Cancer Institute

What Barts Cancer Institute does

Barts Cancer Institute (BCI) is a cancer research institute within Queen Mary University of London, established around 2005 and located at Charterhouse Square, London. It operates six specialised research centres spanning tumour microenvironment, biomarkers and biotherapeutics, cancer cell and molecular biology, haemato-oncology, cancer genomics and computational biology, and tumour biology, alongside an Experimental Cancer Medicine Unit. BCI's core activities include experimental cancer medicine, cancer genomics, bioinformatics, and tumour microenvironment research, supported by the world's first national pancreas tissue bank (PCRFTB), which holds ISO 20387:2018 accreditation and underpins more than 100 collaborative research projects globally.

BCI's notable technical assets include novel oncolytic viral immunotherapies expressing IL-12 for pancreatic cancer, ovarian organoid mini-tumour models, bioinformatics tools for tissue bank analytics, and the PancRISK early-detection diagnostic test, which was spun into Procyon Diagnostics in October 2025. The institute has contributed to clinical practice through the DISCUS trial, which changed NHS bladder cancer treatment guidelines, and through a novel three-pronged CAR-T strategy for pancreatic cancer. AI and multi-omics capabilities span predictive analytics, generative AI, RNA splicing analysis via the SpliceCore platform, and volatile organic compound-based breath diagnostics.

BCI does not operate a commercial revenue model; it is funded through research grants, charitable giving, and industry partnerships, with disclosed commitments including £43.6m for an AI-powered cancer data initiative, £10m for a nanomedicine partnership, and £5.7m from ARIA. Its customer base is best understood as cancer patients (through NHS clinical trials), academic and industry researchers (via tissue bank access), NHS healthcare providers (via guideline-shaping research), and research trainees. As an academic unit of a public university, BCI has no independent ownership or venture capital involvement.

Name

Barts Cancer Institute

Legal name

Barts Cancer Institute - Queen Mary University of London

Website

https://bci.qmul.ac.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Barts Cancer Institute is a Queen Mary University of London cancer research centre conducting experimental cancer medicine, genomics, and tumour microenvironment research, operating the world's first national pancreas tissue bank and partnering with the NHS on clinical trials that shape treatment guidelines.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Cancer Research Services

NAICS

Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (54171), Research and Development in Biotechnology (except Nanobiotechnology) (541714), Medical Laboratories (621511)

SIC

Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731), Services-Medical Laboratories (8071)

akta.pro primary industry

Biomedical Sciences & Medical Research Institutes (University-Based) (EDAHAGAI)

akta.pro secondary industries

Oncology Diagnostics (tumor profiling, MRD, liquid biopsy) (HLAAALAE), Translational Medicine & Biomarkers (HLAIALAF), Clinical Biomarker Testing Services (central labs, trial enrollment/monitoring assays) (HLAAAMAC)

Keywords

• Cancer research institute
• Clinical trial research
• Biomedical research services
• Cancer genomics research
• Biobanking services

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels13 records

Core offering

Barts Cancer Institute is an academic cancer research institute that conducts experimental cancer medicine, cancer genomics, bioinformatics, and tumour microenvironment research, delivered through six research centres and a UK-leading biobank. It runs clinical trials with the NHS, provides tissue-banking services to academic and industry researchers, trains postgraduate cancer researchers, and commercialises selected diagnostics through spinouts such as Procyon Diagnostics.

Product overview

Barts Cancer Institute is a cancer research institute within Queen Mary University of London, not a traditional product company. Its research outputs include the spinout company Procyon Diagnostics offering the PancRISK early pancreatic cancer detection test, and the Pancreatic Cancer Research Fund Tissue Bank providing biobanking services for researchers worldwide. The institute partners in the CRUK City of London Centre for cancer biotherapeutics research.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Procyon Diagnostics (PancRISK) Procyon Diagnostics is a Queen Mary University of London spinout providing pioneering early cancer detection tests; its first product is PancRISK, a test combining the PancRISK score with a urinary biomarker panel for earlier pancreatic cancer detection, intended for clinicians and patients at elevated risk.
• Pancreatic Cancer Research Fund Tissue Bank (PCRFTB) The world's first national pancreas tissue bank, hosted by Barts Cancer Institute, collects and stores high-quality tissue, blood, saliva and urine samples with linked clinical data for pancreatic cancer research by academic and industry researchers worldwide.
• CRUK City of London Centre Cancer Biotherapeutics Research Partnership BCI is a key partner in the Cancer Research UK City of London Centre, a centre of excellence in cancer biotherapeutics that combines expertise across multiple institutions; serves academic researchers, biopharma, and the NHS.
• Experimental Cancer Medicine Clinical Trials Clinical trials conducted by BCI's Centre for Experimental Cancer Medicine in partnership with NHS hospitals and industry sponsors, including the DISCUS trial for bladder cancer which led to updates of NHS treatment guidelines.
• Postgraduate Research and Teaching Programmes Postgraduate research degrees, postgraduate teaching, and short courses in cancer research delivered through Queen Mary University of London for prospective MRes/PhD students, postdoctoral researchers, and clinicians seeking cancer research training.
• Haemato-Oncology Research Collaboration (Barts Health NHS Trust) 14 research labs within the Centre for Haemato-Oncology collaborate with the Barts Health NHS Trust haemato-oncology department at St Bartholomew's Hospital Cancer Centre to translate leukaemia and lymphoma research into clinical practice.

Quantifiable outcome

• Changed NHS treatment guidelines for bladder cancer - reducing chemotherapy from 6 to 3 cycles while maintaining efficacy, improving quality of life
• +5 more outcomes

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability8 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core, flagship and strategic.

• Procyon DiagnosticscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 October 2025Queen Mary University of London launched Procyon Diagnostics spinout company to provide pioneering early cancer detection tests. The company's first test, PancRISK, offers hope for detecting pancreatic cancer earlier, building on over 15 years of research by Professor Tatjana Crnogorac-Jurcevic at Barts Cancer Institute, funded by the Pancreatic Cancer Research Fund.
• King's College LondonflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 August 2025Revolutionary partnership to accelerate and optimise clinical translation of healthcare nanotechnologies. Barts Cancer Institute researchers participate in the £10m initiative investigating innovative radiolabelled nanomedicines.
• University of LeedsflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 August 2025Partnership with King's College London and Barts Cancer Institute to accelerate clinical translation of healthcare nanotechnologies, focusing on radiolabelled nanomedicines with £10m funding.
• EnvisagenicsstrategicTechnology or Integration · 1 December 2022Strategic Collaboration Agreement where Envisagenics leverages its SpliceCore AI platform and Queen Mary's de-identified data to explore RNA splicing in haematopoietic cancers. Dr Ana Rio-Machin leads the research from Barts Cancer Institute, collaborating with Cancer Research Horizons.
• Cancer Research HorizonsstrategicStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 December 2022Cancer Research UK's innovation engine partnered with Queen Mary and Envisagenics to explore alternative splicing in haematopoietic cancers, combining computational approaches with healthcare data to drive therapeutic innovation.
• Barts Health NHS TrustcoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerNHS Trust providing clinical infrastructure for cancer research, clinical trials, and tissue sample collection. Barts Cancer Institute works with the Haemato-Oncology department at St Bartholomew's Hospital Cancer Centre for research implementation.
• CRUK City of London CentreflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerBarts Cancer Institute is a key partner in the CRUK City of London Centre - a centre of excellence in cancer biotherapeutics combining expertise across multiple institutions.
• Francis Crick InstitutestrategicStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on chordoid glioma research with Professor Peter Parker, exploring PRKCA mutation mechanisms in brain tumours.
• Mayo ClinicstrategicStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration with Dr John Copland's team on SCD inhibitor drug for AML treatment, combining BCI patient data analysis with Mayo Clinic's clinical-grade drug development.

Scale indicators14 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Institute of Cancer Research (ICR): London-based cancer research institute with a parallel academic-clinical model, drug discovery programmes, and spinout pipeline (e.g., Monte Rosa Therapeutics, Artios). Directly comparable to BCI in mission, structure under a university, and translational oncology focus.
• Francis Crick Institute: London-based biomedical research institute collaborating with BCI (e.g., chordoid glioma research). Operates a similar model of discovery science with translational oncology programmes and an active industry partnership programme.
• Cancer Research UK Cambridge Centre: University of Cambridge-affiliated cancer research centre combining experimental cancer medicine, genomics, and clinical translation. Directly comparable to BCI in the CRUK network of Centres of Excellence and translational research approach.
• UCL Cancer Institute: University College London's cancer research hub with overlapping focus on haemato-oncology, solid tumour biology, and clinical trials. Comparable as a London-based university cancer institute serving a similar academic and NHS-facing translational mission.
• Manchester Cancer Research Centre: Partnership between Cancer Research UK, the University of Manchester, and The Christie NHS Foundation Trust. Directly comparable in operating model, combining fundamental cancer biology with clinical trials and biobanking infrastructure.
• King's College London - Cancer Studies: King's Health Partners cancer research programme; an active BCI partner in the £10m radiolabelled nanomedicines initiative. Comparable as a London academic medical centre with translational cancer research and NHS integration.
• The Institute of Cancer Research (ICR) / Royal Marsden: Pairing of academic cancer research (ICR) with a specialist cancer hospital (Royal Marsden), analogous to BCI's relationship with Barts Health NHS Trust. Comparable translational model for moving research into clinical practice at scale.

Emerging players

• Wellcome Sanger Institute: Genomics and bioinformatics powerhouse with overlapping capability in cancer genomics and computational biology, including the Cancer, Ageing and Somatic Mutation programme. Comparable to BCI's Cancer Genomics & Computational Biology Centre but with a much broader genomics mandate.

Broad incumbents

• Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center: Largest US cancer research and treatment centre. Comparable as an integrated research-clinical institution but operates at substantially larger scale with a much deeper industry partnership and commercialisation engine.
• MD Anderson Cancer Center: Global leader in oncology research and treatment with a comprehensive research-hospital model. Comparable as a translational cancer centre but at far greater scale, headcount, and industry partnership depth than BCI.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/QMBCI
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCeCXc8BLhxWSzR-KU6AdejA
• Facebookfacebook.com/bartscancerinstitute
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/barts-cancer-institute
• Instagraminstagram.com/qmbci

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Barts Cancer Institute