Awen Oncology

Awen Oncology is a Wales-based biotechnology company focused on the discovery and development of innovative cancer therapeutics. The company is a spin-out from Bangor University and Cardiff University, founded by Dr. Ramsay McFarlane, Dr. Jane Wakeman and Professor Andrea Brancale.

Headquartered at M-SParc on Anglesey, Awen Oncology is part of Wales’ growing life sciences sector, combining academic excellence with commercial ambition. Its work centres on developing first-in-class therapies that target cancer-specific biological mechanisms, with the aim of improving treatment outcomes while reducing side effects.

The company’s approach integrates advanced computational chemistry, drug discovery expertise and biological research to identify and develop new therapeutic candidates. Its pipeline includes programmes targeting rare cancers with significant unmet clinical need, alongside potential applications in more common cancer types.

Awen Oncology builds on early-stage academic research supported by organisations including Cancer Research Wales and continues to work towards advancing its therapies through pre-clinical development, with the long-term goal of delivering new treatments to patients globally.

The Development Bank of Wales made a pre-seed £500,000 investment in Awen Oncology in 2024, in partnership with a £250,000 investment from the Start Codon accelerator programme, which supported the early stages of the company’s growth. Additional early-stage support came from a Welsh Government capital investment and an Innovate UK award of £491,000 under its Future Economies Investor Partnerships scheme, the first to be awarded in Wales.