South West Partners BRC

The South West Peninsula is unique.

It is home to more older adults than anywhere else in the UK, and its population includes some of the most vulnerable groups and deprived communities in our country. Thus, the South West gives us a snapshot of what major challenges the NHS will face in the future.

It also offers a ready-made setting for world-class research to improve treatment and care in the areas that need it the most.

The South West Partners BRC will be the gateway for this research, carrying out high-quality science into the health areas that are most important to our communities, always putting patients at the forefront of what we do.

Our partnership brings together world-class medical research leaders from across the region, including clinical and laboratory scientists, doctors, nurses, and data experts.

Their technical knowledge will be partnered with expertise from patients, carers, and families to identify and drive forward important new research.

Our team will focus on five major, complementary research themes that all aim to improve how we diagnose, treat, and care for people. This will transform lives, improve the NHS and ensure patients receive the treatment and care that is best for them. These themes represent our greatest strengths. They are: 1.

Neurodegeneration: We will find and test new, better drugs that prevent and treat major brain conditions in older adults such as dementia and Parkinson s disease. 2.

Rehabilitation: We will use exciting new approaches to help older people to recover from illness or manage their long-term conditions like dementia and arthritis. This will include using technology to improve movement, maintain brain health and prevent falls. 3.

Diabetes: We will improve the way diabetes is diagnosed and treated, and we will explore how to help those most at risk of developing the disease. 4.

Genetics: We will unlock the power of genetics, using it to improve diagnosis of rare illnesses in children and rare cancers, and to create treatments for common diseases that can be tailored to different people based on their unique genetic profile. 5.

Clinical Mycology: We will seek better treatments to prevent and manage fungal infections that are common in the UK and understand better how fungi become resistant to drug treatments.

We will achieve these ambitious aims by building on the partnerships and relationships we already have with the NHS, the commercial sector, and other scientists in our field.

We will use smart investment decisions and build networks to ensure our University and NHS researchers have access to the best possible technologies and training, and to enable our developing researchers to forge their careers in research in the South West.

Most importantly, we will work together with patients and the public to ensure our research truly represents the needs and interests of the people who are affected most by the conditions and diseases we work on.

The South West Partners BRC will drive forward exciting, impactful research that will make a real difference to people s lives and the NHS.