A team of engineers led by the Universities of Glasgow and Southampton have received an IET Excellence and Innovation Award for a new wireless therapeutics device.

The winning technology targets non-healing wounds with an antibiotics-free solution delivered through a wireless smart bandage, with the same method then being adapted as an implant for bladder cancer treatment. 

The research, led by Dr Mahmoud Wagih of the James Watt School of Engineering, focused on wireless-powered, battery-free devices that deliver treatment through light. Using ultraviolet type-C (UV-C) LEDs, a smart fabric bandage was shown to prevent bacterial growth in non-healing wounds.  

Lab tests of the technology found the smart bandage could slow and stop the growth of a bacteria on the surfaces of slides, eradicating it within six hours, suggesting similar outcomes for patients with non-healing wounds.

The research team then developed an implantable prototype using visible light to release single-oxygen molecules for targeted drug delivery, killing bladder cancer tumour cells, with the work going on to win first prize for healthcare technologies at the IET Excellence and Innovation Awards.

“Wireless power delivery could enable new wearable and implantable therapeutics, from sterilising non-healing wounds to drug delivery for cancer treatment. I am really pleased to see our work recognised by this prestigious award,” said Dr Wagih.

The researchers believe that the e-textile approach could see significantly improved treatments for patients with persistent wounds, being an advance over typical smart bandages that currently monitor wound conditions.

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Meanwhile, the use of wireless, implantable microsystems and photodynamic therapy to treat bladder cancer was part of several research projects provided support in 2022 through the New Horizons fund, administered by the Engineering and Physical Science Research Council.

At the time, the project was noted for the potential to address the unmet clinical needs of bladder cancer patients, including its late detection, limited treatment options, and high mortality rate. 

On the latest results of the project, Professor David Flynn of the James Watt School of Engineering, whose work focuses on implantable photodynamic therapy, said: “We aim to create a ground-breaking treatment in response to the unmet clinical need of bladder cancer through a world-first in photodynamic therapy from an implantable wireless medical microsystem; the early results are very promising.”