Grand Challenge final29 Nov 2018 14:36
My view on the GC is that if Scancell don't win it then it will not alter the potential commercial interest - the links with BionTech, Roche and CRUK were never conditional on the GC, so I suspect we may see the reverse of patent news - loads of people seem disappointed when a patent is granted and the sp doesn't react, or only fractionally. (Not just scancell, pretty much all bios) The unspoken part there is that if a patent is NOT granted, then it is a serious, potentially terminal setback, so a patent is a necessity not a bonus. As far as the GC goes, if we don't get it then so be it, the company will carry on with whatever it is doing behind the scenes. But if we do win it it is an excellent opportunity for general publicity, and might be a little extra wake-up for any commercial watchers. A bit like a Nobel Prize nomination - if you win everyone celebrates and it boosts your business, but if you are nominated and don't win nobody thinks any the less of your endeavours. And my money is on a win or prize award, partly because of my view of the company, and partly after a good read through of the others on the shortlist.