CHICAGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--GE HealthCare announces the commencement, and its leading industrial role, in Thera4Care, an initiative aimed at revolutionizing the use of theranostics to broaden patient access in Europe. The €25.3 million project gathers 29 partners from top European academic and clinical sites, small and medium-sized enterprises, and patient advocacy groups.

Cancer is the leading cause of death worldwide, accounting for nearly ten million deaths in 2022. By 2050, the global burden is expected to grow to 35 million new cancer cases[1], which is due, in part, to population growth and aging. As a breakthrough approach to treating cancer, theranostics integrates imaging diagnostics and targeted therapeutics for personalized treatment of disease. It uses molecular imaging technologies to visualize tumor receptors and, if present, deliver a radioactive drug to selectively target the tumor cells.

Theranostics is already used to treat a number of late-stage prostate and neuroendocrine cancers, but it is only available in a handful of specialized centers. There is critical incremental clinical need to develop new, innovative radiotheranostics to expand clinical indications of theranostics as well as to expand its use to community centers for broader patient access.

Thera4Care aims to expand the use of theranostics in Europe by creating, implementing, and disseminating standardized, scalable methods for the production, detection, and monitoring of key theranostic isotopes, from the manufacturing and early delivery of diagnostics through to therapy. The project will strengthen the use and adoption of radiology-based diagnostics and therapies and focus on disease areas (prostate, ovarian, pancreas cancers and sarcomas), aligning with the growing significance of multi-modal radiotheranostics solutions. GE HealthCare technology already supports the steps needed to deliver on the theranostics pathway, encompassing cyclotrons and PET and SPECT imaging scanners to advanced visualization solutions, digital solutions, and consulting services.

“We are thrilled to play a leading role in Thera4Care, a unique collaboration of academic and industry partners who share a common goal to advance connected, personalized and compassionate cancer care,” said Dr. Ben Newton, GE HealthCare’s general manager for Oncology Solutions. “Our collective efforts are designed to improve healthcare system readiness for this rapidly growing field of precision medicine.”

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