10087520Klas Therapeutics LimitedClosedCollaborative R&DInnovate UKKlas Therapeutics Ltd. is a Northern Ireland based company founded in Feb. 2021\. The company has developed technology that is new and innovative for the treatment of non-resectable malignant melanoma (MM), the most aggressive form of skin cancer. The technology originates from research carried out at the School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences at Ulster University. Although MM represents less than 5% of skin cancers, it is responsible for 75% of skin cancer-related deaths. 16,000 new melanoma cases are diagnosed each year in the UK alone. Globally, 325,000 melanoma incidences occur annually with these figures set to rise. Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) and targeted treatments have revolutionised the treatment of MM, however, only approximately 50% of patients respond to ICIs and the heterogenous nature of these lesions prove hard for the targeted treatments to eradicate, demonstrating that a high unmet medical need remains for MM. Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is a light activated treatment currently approved in the UK for non- malignant melanoma. The benefits of PDT are reduced resistance, high efficacy, minimal systemic side effects, and minimal scarring. However, the highly pigmented nature of MM lesions has proven PDT ineffective for MM. Klas Therapeutics have developed KT-001, a novel innovative therapy that has unlocked the use of PDT for MM, providing MM patients with targeted treatment, close to 100% cellular death and 500% tumour growth reduction. This project follows on from the successful Innovate UK market discovery programme 'Innovation to commercialisation of University research'(ICURe), with a comprehensive package of work to increase both the technology and investor readiness level of this innovative discovery, increasing the likelihood of ultimate patient benefit.