The Eindhoven startup VivArt-X collaborate with Smart BioMaterials Consortium (SBMC) and Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e) over the next three years on the accelerated development of a synthetic biomaterial for forming healthy breast tissue after breast surgery. An amount of 1.4 million has been reserved for the project. Fifty percent of the costs are borne by the collaborating partners. Thirty-five percent comes from the European subsidy program OPZuid. The Province of Noord-Brabant accounts for the remaining 15 percent.

The research by VivArt-X and its consortium partners can have a major impact on public health. One in seven women will get breast cancer at some point in her life. More than 50 percent opt for breast reconstruction. The new personalized method, in which the body’s own cells form healthy breast tissue, should result in fewer reoperations, better recovery, and a better quality of life after breast surgery.

In order to make the technology available to patients faster, VivArt-X will work with SBMC and TU/e for a period of three years. TU/e contributes its knowledge and facilities; SBMC will be responsible for accelerating product development and quality assurance. The screening of the new material and the improvement of cell-material interactions will be carried out in the development laboratory of SBMC, on the TU/e campus.