2024-02-02 08:15:09
Spain ranks ninth among European countries and seventeenth in the world by presenting 1,539 patents for innovation against cancer in the last two decades. Diagnostic techniques or immunotherapy treatments, among the main advances at a global level.
Cover of the study “Patents and innovation against cancer”. of the European Patent Office. Photo provided
These are data from the new study “Patents and innovation against cancer” published by the European Patent Office (EPO) on the occasion of World Cancer Day, February 4.
Oncological inventions have increased by more than 70% between 2015 and 2021, a percentage obtained by the number of international patent families (IPF) requested at the EPO in that period.
Furthermore, in the last 50 years more than 140,000 inventions to combat cancer have been disclosed and revealed to the public.
In the European Union, 31% of men and 25% of women are expected to be diagnosed with cancer before the age of 75.
The study aims to provide cancer decision-makers and innovators with information contained in patents for cancer-fighting technologies around the world.
Leaders in patents against cancer
The United States leads cancer-related innovation worldwide, with nearly 50% of all IPFs from 2002 to 2021 attributed to US applicants.
The European Union is in second place, with a share of 18%, followed by Japan, with 9%.
More recently, China has made significant progress in this field, making a major contribution to the global cancer innovation landscape, the report notes.
Spain is part of the top 10 most innovative European countries when it comes to fighting cancer, with 1,539 IPF requested during the last two decades by Spanish innovators.
The European list is headed by Germany and the United Kingdom, followed by France, Switzerland and the Netherlands, which have shown a constant increase in this matter.
Chart with the 10 European countries with the most patents requested to combat cancer, 2002–2021, Spain is in ninth place.
Graphic from the study “Patents and innovation against cancer”. Photo provided
Innovation in cancer diagnosis and treatment
Patents in cancer have been directed primarily at treatment and diagnosis.
Advances in treatments immunotherapies and genetic therapies have played an important role. Thus, between 2015 and 2021, the number of international patent families in immunotherapy more than doubled, while gene therapy doubled during the same period.
Regarding diagnosis, the patents of liquid biopsies. Specifically, IPF in liquid biopsy increased fivefold, going from just over 500 in 2012 to more than 2,300 in 2021.
Other advances focused on health informatics, the use of advanced image processing and machine learning algorithms to improve the accuracy and efficiency of cancer detection and diagnosis.
Universities and public centers, greater prominence
The study also points to a change in the way these innovations have been coming to market over the past two decades.
Thus, universities, hospitals, public research organizations and start-ups play an increasingly important role.
Between 2002 and 2021, these entities have played a decisive role in almost a third of international cancer-related patent families, representing 26% of all these IPFs from EU applicants and 35% of IPFs of American applicants, significantly exceeding their average contribution across all technologies.
In Spain, the Higher Council for Scientific Research (CSIC) stands out as a key center for oncological innovation, with 184 IPFs requested between 2002 and 2021.
Online platform
He study is completed with the launch by the EPO of a free online platform, “Technologies combatting cancer”which simplifies researchers’ access to the technical information contained in patents, through searches in already predefined patent databases.
Developed by EPO experts, in collaboration with 10 national patent offices throughout Europe, the tool presents more than 130 data sets grouped into four main themes: prevention and early detection; diagnosis; therapies; and wellness and aftercare.
The platform includes not only the 140,000 inventions on which the study is based, but many more. This is the fourth platform of this type launched by the EPO, following the initiatives to combat the coronavirus, the clean energy technologies platform and the firefighting platform.
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