CBC on Virtual Tour – Cystic Fibrosis

Mon 14 December 2020

With over 10,600 people living with the condition, cystic fibrosis (CF) is one of the UK's most common life-threatening inherited diseases. Since 2016, Professor Andres Floto and colleagues have been exploring how digital health and home (‘remote’) monitoring could be applied to improve and personalise CF care.

Cystic fibrosis is caused by having two copies of a defective gene. The defective gene causes the internal organs, especially the lungs and digestive system, to become clogged with thick sticky mucus.

Prof Floto and colleagues aim to use digital healthcare to speed up diagnosis and delivery of treatments when people with CF experience a worsening of lung symptoms, as part of the UK Cystic Fibrosis Innovation Hub. They are also working to reduce the number of face-to-face clinic appointments that people with CF have to attend, through a programme called Project Breathe. The Project Breathe programme was accelerated and adapted for non-research participants with CF in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Biographies
Professor Andres Floto is Professor of Respiratory Biology at the University of Cambridge, Director of the UK Cystic Fibrosis Innovation Hub, co-Director of the Cambridge Centre for AI in Medicine and honorary consultant at Royal Papworth Hospital.

Kirsty Hill is the managing director of Magic Bullet Ltd, a digital healthcare innovator. She leads the team responsible for delivering the technical solution for the Project Breathe clinical evaluation. Project Breathe is an exciting collaboration between Magic Bullet, the Cystic Fibrosis Trust, Royal Papworth Hospital, the University of Cambridge and Microsoft.