Posted on 11 days ago by Laurentina Kennedy
€2.5m has been awarded for the development of a project called "SMARTHEAL", an implant which aims to improve postoperative care for colorectal cancer patients.
The funding has been awarded to scientists from AMBER, the Research Ireland Centre for Advanced Materials and BioEngineering Research based in Trinity College Dublin (TCD).
Colorectal cancer affects over 1.9 million people worldwide each year and is a common cancer in Ireland with approximately 2,500 people diagnosed each year.
In most cases, surgery to remove the tumour is necessary, and intestinal continuity is restored through an anastomosis, a surgical connection made when part of the bowel has been bypassed or removed.
"SMARTHEAL" is designed to reduce complications associated with this procedure and enhance healing.
The €2.5m in funding has been awarded via the European Innovation Council (EIC) Transition Call.
"SMARTHEAL" is coordinated by AMBER's Professor Larisa Florea, of the School of Chemistry, Trinity College Dublin (TCD) and builds on her previous work on sensing technologies and micro-fabrication.
"This project is a unique opportunity to apply my research in real-world applications and showcases how fundamental research plays an important role in the realisation of innovative medical devices," Professor Florea said.
"This project would not have been possible without the participation of an award-winning SME, Plio Surgical, spun out in 2024 from Professor Bruce Murphy's lab, here in TCD," she added.