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EPO: The EU leads in the number of startups in the field of oncology

by AI | 04.Feb 2025 | Europe in brief AI

Europe leads in the number of startups in the field of oncology, although it is losing ground in the fastest-growing cancer innovations, according to a study by the European Patent Office (EPO).

Photo: Sina Schuldt/dpa

Europe is leading in the number of startups in the field of oncology, although it is losing ground in the fastest-growing cancer innovations.
This is the conclusion of a study by the European Patent Office (EPO), concerning startups specializing in technologies that focus on oncology issues.
According to a statement by the Industrial Property Organization, cancer remains a significant threat to public health in Europe, representing nearly 25% of global cases and over 20% of deaths, despite having less than 10% of the world’s population.
Technological advancements are improving survival rates, with European healthcare systems showing excellence in cancer prevention and patient care.
On the occasion of World Cancer Day, the European Patent Office (EPO) published its second study on cancer-related technologies, providing an in-depth analysis of the fastest-growing technology sectors, such as

  • cellular immunotherapy (where the number of patent applications increased at an average annual rate of 37.5% between 2015 and 2021)
  • gene therapy (+31%), and
  • image analysis (+20%)
    The study entitled “New frontiers in oncology: an evolving innovation ecosystem” shows that Europe is losing share in patent applications in these high-growth cancer innovation sectors compared to the US and China, falling an average of 5 percentage points in the top three fastest-growing sectors. However, it finds that Europe hosts the largest number of startups in the field of oncology, with approximately 1,500 entities, compared to 1,325 in the US.

Statement

“Based on the Mario Draghi Report on the future of European competitiveness, the findings of this study serve as a wake-up call for the European innovation system in oncology,” said EPO President António Campinos.
“As cancer technologies evolve quickly and move in unexpected directions,” he continued, “Europe must respond to maintain its competitive edge in healthcare innovation and save lives. Europe’s vibrant startups in the field of oncology are a bright spot, but they need investment and support to scale their inventions.”

European startups stronger in early development stages

The study shows that among the EPO member states, the United Kingdom leads with 290 oncology-related startups, followed by France with 246 and Germany with 208. However, a strong contrast emerges in development stages. That is, while Europe has more startups in early stages and the first development phase, the US significantly outpaces Europe in scaling startups at later development stages. Nearly 40% of US cancer-related startups have reached this advanced stage, compared to 24% in the EU and 27% in other EPO member countries, highlighting the challenges faced by European startups in successfully scaling.

Research centers and universities play a central role in cancer innovation

Meanwhile, nearly half of all patents from EU countries between 2010 and 2021 came from universities, public research organizations, or hospitals. Beyond patent filing activity, over 12% of patent applications related to cancer in the EU originated from research institutions but were filed by companies. In other EPO member countries, research institutions contributed almost 30% of all patents, with 6.4% being filed by companies.

The link to the study has been posted on the EPO website: https://www.epo.org/en/news-events/news/european-startups-forefront-fight-against-cancer