World Health Day 2023: EIC-funded ventures tackling diagnostic and therapeutic gaps

For World Health Day on 7 April the European Innovation Council Community showcased three EIC-supported companies that are pursuing disruptive technologies in healthcare. Each targets a clear unmet need. Ligence focuses on automating and standardising echocardiography with artificial intelligence. Glycanostics pursues a non-invasive glycan-based liquid biopsy for earlier and more selective prostate cancer detection. NETRIS Pharma develops NP137, a monoclonal antibody against Netrin-1 designed to trigger cancer cell death and to overcome resistance to current immunotherapies. These examples illustrate how EIC funding is being used to de-risk early stage deep tech and biomedicine in the EU. The projects remain at different stages of validation and face well known barriers to clinical adoption.

Ligence UAB: automating echocardiography with deep learning

Ligence is a Lithuanian deep tech and health tech start-up coordinating an EIC-funded project called AI-driven cardiac ultrasound analysis. Echocardiography is the most commonly used cost-effective method to image the heart but it is operator dependent and prone to inter-reader variability. Ligence aims to automate the full analysis pipeline so hospitals can generate standardised measurements and reports with less manual input.

The EU context matters. Medical AI products require robust clinical validation and regulatory clearance in each market. In the EU that means meeting medical device rules and the EU Artificial Intelligence Act expectations as they are implemented. Reimbursement models for diagnostic software also remain fragmented across member states which can slow hospital uptake.

Glycanostics: a glycan-based liquid biopsy for prostate cancer screening

Glycanostics is a Slovakian start-up coordinating the EIC-funded ProSCAN project to develop a next generation non-invasive liquid biopsy for prostate cancer based on glycan analysis in blood. Prostate cancer is one of the most common cancers in men. The company highlights that early detection could prevent around half of prostate cancer deaths, and that many biopsies performed today are negative.

These claims are promising but require independent clinical validation, peer reviewed evidence and regulatory assessment before being adopted into screening guidelines. Diagnostic accuracy metrics such as sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value and negative predictive value need to be reported for defined clinical cohorts. The path from an accurate laboratory test to routine use also passes through cost effectiveness analysis and payer negotiations which differ across the EU.

NETRIS Pharma: targeting Netrin-1 to induce tumour cell death and relieve immunotherapy resistance

NETRIS Pharma is a French biotech spin-off from the Centre Léon Bérard in Lyon. The company is coordinating the EIC-funded ImmunoNet project and is developing NP137, a humanised monoclonal antibody that targets the secreted guidance molecule Netrin-1. NETRIS positions NP137 as a first-in-class agent able to both inhibit tumour growth and reduce resistance to immune checkpoint inhibitors and chemotherapy in preclinical models.

NETRIS frames NP137 as a strategy to improve response rates when combined with standard of care therapies. Nonetheless the critical endpoints for regulatory approval and clinical adoption are improvement in clinically meaningful outcomes such as progression free survival and overall survival in controlled trials. Early phase signals and safety data are necessary but not sufficient to guarantee later stage success.

How the EIC and EU support fit into development

The European Innovation Council provides grants and support intended to de-risk high potential deep tech and life sciences projects. For companies such as Ligence, Glycanostics and NETRIS this backing can accelerate prototyping, clinical validation and regulatory preparation. The EIC is one piece of a larger European innovation ecosystem that includes national grants, Horizon Europe research funding, private investors and public clinical networks. Even with EIC support, companies must still navigate complex clinical trials, regulatory pathways and fragmented reimbursement systems across member states.

Comparative snapshot

Implications and caveats

These three projects illustrate the type of high risk high reward interventions the EIC aims to support. They also highlight recurring challenges. For diagnostics and AI tools independent, peer reviewed evidence that demonstrates reproducible performance across diverse populations is essential. For therapeutics early clinical safety and activity are promising but must be followed by larger, controlled trials showing patient benefit. Regulatory approval across EU markets and alignment with national health technology assessment and reimbursement processes remain non-trivial obstacles.

Policy makers and funders can accelerate impact by supporting multicentre infrastructure, standardised trial networks and clearer regulatory guidance for AI and combined modality trials. Industry and investors must remain realistic about timelines and the capital intensity of late stage clinical development. For patients and clinicians, the ultimate test is whether these technologies improve meaningful outcomes in real world care and fit sustainably into health systems.

Bottom line

Ligence, Glycanostics and NETRIS Pharma are examples of EIC-backed efforts to modernise diagnosis and treatment in cardiovascular disease and oncology. Each pursues a plausible technological path to impact. However further independent validation, regulatory clearance and investment in real world implementation are needed before the potential benefits claimed by the companies can be widely realised for patients across the EU.