A pioneering pneumonia test developed by Cambridge Science Park member EDX Medical is helping NHS doctors identify life-threatening infections in hours instead of days.
The need for faster diagnosis is significant. Every year, an estimated 72,500 people in England develop hospital-acquired pneumonia, leading to more than 15,000 deaths and the loss of almost 460,000 hospital bed days. Earlier, more precise testing has the potential to improve patient care while making better use of intensive care resources.
Following successful development and technical validation, EDX Medical’s Ventilator-Acquired Pneumonia (VAP) test is now being used in the John Farman Intensive Care Unit at Addenbrooke’s Hospital. The test detects and identifies a broad range of bacterial, viral and fungal pathogens from a small sample of fluid taken from a patient’s lung.
Instead of waiting several days for traditional microbiology results, clinicians receive secure test results within hours, enabling them to make faster, more informed decisions about antibiotic treatment. Several critically ill patients have already benefited since the test entered clinical use last month.
The test builds on pioneering research carried out in Cambridge. EDX Medical licensed the intellectual property and clinical research data in 2025 from Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, the University of Cambridge and the UK Health Security Agency via Cambridge Enterprise before completing its development and technical validation in partnership with Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and Thermo Fisher Scientific.
EDX Medical is now providing the assay to Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust under a four-year service agreement. The company will also work with Thermo Fisher Scientific to develop and validate a kit version of the test for hospitals and laboratories across the UK and Europe, subject to regulatory approval.
Professor Sir Chris Evans, founder of EDX Medical, described the project as delivering a “world-class test” that has already shown it can help save lives.
By giving doctors faster answers and supporting more informed antibiotic prescribing, the technology has the potential to improve outcomes for critically ill patients while helping reduce the risk of antibiotic-resistant bacteria.