Lucida Medical raises £8.7m to expand AI prostate cancer diagnostics across NHS

A worsening shortage of clinical radiologists across the UK is creating dangerous delays in prostate cancer diagnosis — and Cambridge-based healthtech company Lucida Medical is positioning its AI diagnostic platform as a scalable solution, backed by £8.7 million in fresh funding.

According to Business Weekly, the round was led by IW Capital, with participation from existing investors XTX Ventures and Macmillan Cancer Support. The capital will fund faster rollout of Lucida's software, which is already active across 15 NHS hospital sites.

The Royal College of Radiologists estimates a 30 per cent shortfall in clinical radiologists currently exists across the UK, a figure that could reach 40 per cent by 2028. The consequences are measurable: delayed scan reporting, later-stage cancer detection and greater treatment complexity across already stretched hospital systems.

Lucida's patented software analyses MRI scans to support faster, more consistent identification of prostate cancer, flagging high-risk cases for urgent radiologist review. Somerset NHS Foundation Trust has deployed the technology since 2024, using it to prioritise urgent biopsies for patients whose scans indicate elevated risk.

Co-founder and CEO Dr Antony Rix said the gap between rising imaging demand and reporting capacity is the core problem his company addresses. "In the NHS, few Trusts can confirm or rule out cancer within 28 days, and some patients can wait two months or longer. Lucida Medical is ideally placed to reduce this burden, and this funding will allow us to do that faster."

The scale of need is significant. Macmillan Cancer Support estimates 610,000 men in the UK are currently living with prostate cancer — a figure 20 per cent higher than five years ago. In 2024, only 55 per cent of men in England received a diagnosis before the cancer had spread beyond the prostate.

Anthony Cunliffe, Lead Medical Advisor at Macmillan Cancer Support, said earlier diagnosis could transform outcomes for tens of thousands of men each year. "If we can combine better symptoms awareness with speedier diagnosis, we could help revolutionise care for the tens of thousands of men diagnosed with prostate cancer each year in the UK."

The technology carries regulatory approval for use across the UK and EU.Find out more about Lucida Medical's funding and NHS expansion in the complete report.