SpectraCure is part of the European training network PHAST (Photonics for Healthcare: multiscale cancer diagnosiS and Therapy), which educates and trains young researchers in biophotonics to promote innovations in cancer diagnosis and treatment. PHAST is funded by the EU’s research-support framework program, Horizon 2020. In PHAST, about fifteen PhD students are linked to universities and companies around Europe. SpectraCure has an industrial PhD student, Stefan Susnjar, who is working on further developing SpectraCure’s IDOSE technology.
8-10 May, a program meeting was held in PHAST at the Leibniz Institute in Jena, Germany. At the meeting, SpectraCure’s technical director, Johannes Swartling, gave a lecture on the historical background of photodynamic therapy (PDT) and various clinical applications, for example, the method SpectraCure has developed for the treatment of prostate cancer. PDT is a treatment method that uses a light-sensitive substance that is activated by laser light to kill cancer cells.
“PHAST represents cutting-edge research in the use of advanced laser technology and photonics within medicine, and it is valuable for SpectraCure to receive funding for an industrial PhD student within the program. The research exchange also strengthens the cooperation between universities and medical technology companies in Europe”, says Johannes Swartling, CTO of SpectraCure.
