The 19th edition of Advanced Therapies UK, held at ExCeL London on March 18-19, 2025, brought together over 2,500 attendees from around the globe. In this blog, Oliver Brown and Rachel Savery cover key highlights from the event.
Oliver Brown
Project Lead
Life Sciences Hub Wales and Advanced Therapies Wales were proud to co-host a stand at this conference, which covered the entire Advanced Therapy Medicinal Product (ATMP) pipeline and featured talks, panel discussions, and roundtables on all aspects of Advanced Therapies from bench to bedside and beyond.
The conference was designed for all stakeholders in the advanced therapies sector, exploring the current state of research, regulation, access and pricing, clinical delivery and more.
At our joint stand, we showcased Wales’ commitment to nurturing the field of advanced therapies. We provided a united front for Wales with representation from Advanced Therapies Wales, Life Sciences Hub Wales, and Midlands Wales Advanced Therapies Treatment Centre (MW-ATTC). The stand featured the clinical lead from ATW/MW-ATTC, highlighting our collaborative efforts and expertise in the sector.
Roundtable – ‘Equal Access, Engaged Patients: Centring the patient voice in the development and delivery of novel therapies’
We hosted a roundtable, chaired by Dr Cheney Drew of Cardiff University, which provided a platform for meaningful discussions on the importance of involving patients and the public in the development and implementation of advanced therapies.
This roundtable highlighted the need for transparent communication and collaboration to build trust and relationships between healthcare professionals and a diverse range of patients, especially with populations that are distrustful of medicine, science, and pharmaceutical companies. This process was seen as a long-term effort and effective communication and relationship building strategies should be developed to support this.
Engaging patients in ATMP clinical trials is often difficult due to the low number of participants, making it challenging to capture a comprehensive view of the patient perspective. It was also discussed that there are significant difficulties explaining technical information to patients in clinical trials, and that how questions are phrased is important for receiving quality feedback.
The outputs from the roundtable will contribute to the formation and publication of an Equity of Access to ATMP clinical Trials report which is being led by MW-ATTC through the ATTC network and ATMP engage.
Additionally, Dr Hannah Crocker and Dr Ibukunoluwa Oginni-Falajiki from the NHS Wales Joint Commissioning Committee (NWJCC) and part of the Advanced Therapies Wales group, presented a poster on the ATMP Outcomes Programme. This poster detailed the efforts to track and analyse patient outcomes following treatment with an ATMP, to understand the real-world impact and value-added to the patient, the system and wider society. The programme is a testament to Wales’ dedication to evidence-based and patient-centred practices in the field of advanced therapies.
Collaboration in Wales
There was great interest in our stand with a constant flow of attendees appreciating the collaborative approach, wanting to find out more about the landscape in Wales and how they can get involved.
There was also keen interest in the Delivery Plan for Advanced Therapies in Wales, a first for a UK nation. The plan outlines a comprehensive strategy focused on nurturing a dynamic ecosystem, developing healthcare delivery pathways, fostering research capacity, and providing centralised access to information and engagement. With buy-in from many stakeholders across Wales and endorsement from the Welsh Government, the plan seeks to harness innovative treatments, enhance service development, and ensure equitable access, ultimately transforming care and treatment in Wales.
We’re proud to be at the centre of such a vibrant ecosystem, and to play our part in helping it flourish. So, if you’re part of an innovative life sciences business with an interest in advanced therapies, whether small or large, we’d love to hear from you.
Get in touch at hello@lshubwales.com or advancedtherapieswales@wales.nhs.com.
Authors: Oliver Brown, Project Lead, Life Sciences Hub Wales and Rachel Savery, Head of Programme, Advanced Therapies Wales.