Health is our Business

North West, Manchester & the Corridor

Manchester is at the heart of one of the UK’s three biomedical clusters; a global player in the healthcare, biotechnology, pharmaceuticals and science related industries. There are 280 core biomedical companies located in the UK’s Northwest, 75% of which are based in Manchester. Significant healthcare, diagnostics, analytics and clinical supply chain investors in the North West region include; Molnlycke, Baxter, Terumo, Fresenius-Kabi, Depuy, Applied Biosystems, Waters, Shimadzu, Thermo Fisher, ICON and Advanced Medical Solutions.

The North West is the UK’s largest producer of pharmaceuticals with seven multinationals located here; Astra Zeneca (its largest global research and development facility), Bristol Myers Squibb, GlaxoSmithKline, Eli Lilly, Novartis, Sanofi-aventis and Teva.

Manchester’s strengths include children’s medicine, oncology, cardiovascular, inflammation and repair, mental health and medical devices. The city has already been designated as an Academic Health Science Centre and is home to companies such as ICON, Shimadzu, Epistem and Novartis.

And it is the Corridor at the heart of Manchester’s health sector. Businesses and organisations locate here so they can be close to our partners and each other.

Click here to download the latest Health is our Business brochure

The City of Firsts

Manchester is known for its world firsts – the first test tube baby, the first hip replacement – we are medical and health pioneers. Manchester created the concept of health visiting, led the world’s largest cancer trial and was the first location to offer biological treatment for recovery after a stroke.

By providing directly relevant and sector-specific industry support, the Manchester city region has developed a diverse, high-growth industry with operations ranging from new university spin-outs – commercialising world-class research from the University of Manchester – to Astra Zeneca’s corporate headquarters.

The region’s NHS employs over 190,000 people and is responsible for over £7 billion of expenditure.

Manchester is a city of contrasts: leading healthcare research facilities and a regenerated city centre sit alongside pockets of economic and health deprivation. Researchers in Manchester work to reduce the city’s health inequalities through innovative research programmes, working with an ethnically diverse, active patient population that is some 3.2million strong. Research organisations also have access to superb clinical trials facilities in both the public and private sector.

The city’s significant public infrastructure is strengthened by five university teaching hospitals with a combined annual expenditure in excess of £2billion.

On the Corridor

The University of Manchester provides the world with more than 5,000 biotech and medical graduates every year. Manchester Metropolitan University produce world-class professionals and with facilities, such as the Dalton Research Institute they are leading the world in areas such as nano-info-bio (NIB)

Recent developments on the Corridor include Central Manchester University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust’s £600m investment into a new hospitals development, including the UK’s largest Children’s Hospital; the new wing of Manchester Royal Infirmary; the new St Mary’s Hospital, which provides care for women from pre-conception to childbirth and the new Royal Eye Hospital, all supported by top rated clinical academic teams.

To learn more about the organisations and institutions that form this impressive cluster, launch the Explore the Corridor Interactive map and select ‘Health is our Business’.

Off the Corridor

The Manchester Cancer Research Centre was established in The University of Manchester in close partnership with The Christie NHS Foundation Trust and Cancer Research UK. The Paterson Institute is also an MCRC partner. The MCRC has links to other Trusts conducting cancer research in Manchester and aims to bring together the expertise, vision and resources of partner organisations that have formidable individual reputations in the fields of cancer treatment and clinical research.

The Christie NHS Foundation Trust Is one of Europe’s leading cancer centres, treating over 40,000 patients a year. As a national specialist, around 26% of patients are referred from other parts of the country. Christie’s is an international leader in research, pioneering world-first breakthroughs for over 100 years, and running one of the largest early clinical trial units in the world, as well as the biggest chemotherapy facility in the UK.

Cancer research in Manchester, most of which is undertaken on the Christie site, has been officially ranked the best in the UK.

The Paterson Institute for Cancer Research Is a leading cancer research institute within The University of Manchester, core funded by Cancer Research UK, the largest independent cancer research organisation in the world. Research spans the whole spectrum of cancer research, from programmes investigating molecular and cellular basis of cancer, to those focused on translational research and development of therapeutics. The Institute has over 200 Postdoctoral Scientists, Clinical Fellows, Scientific Officers, Administrative and Technical staff, Postgraduate Research Students and Visiting Fellows.