Last week, we attended the Festival of Genomics and Biodata at ExCeL London, where we were proud to support the many Welsh speakers and panel participants from across our own and partner organisations. Now in its 11th year, the festival featured an Advanced Therapies stage for the first time, providing an excellent platform to showcase the progress and impact of our work to date.

It was fantastic to welcome so many people to our stand, eager to learn more about advanced therapies and our programme. The conversations were thoughtful, insightful and energising—it was a pleasure to meet you all. We were especially pleased to have engaging discussions with Jo (CamRARE), Carole (Flutters and Strutters) and Alan (Ataxia and Me).

Day one featured a strong line-up of speakers and discussions. Suzanne Rankin, Chief Executive of Cardiff and Vale University Health Board and Senior Responsible Officer for Advanced Therapies Wales (ATW), took to the Main Stage as part of a panel exploring practical strategies for delivering the next decade of UK health and care—and what’s next for the NHS.

Professor Tom Connor, Head of the Public Health Genomics Programme at Public Health Wales, spoke on the Bacteria, Bugs & Big Data Stage, highlighting how pathogen genomics is being harnessed across the Welsh healthcare system to support population-level health insights.

On the Live Lounge Stage, Alice Frenken, Project Manager at Genomics Partnership Wales (GPW), alongside GPW Sounding Board Member Jennifer Griffiths, explored how patient involvement is shaping genomics in Wales.

Dr Sophie Harding, Pharmacogenomics Lead at the All Wales Medical Genomics Service, presented on the Precision Medicine & Patient Stratification Stage, outlining how pharmacogenomic services are being delivered across Wales and what this means for patient care.

Day two continued the momentum. Isabel Oliver, Chief Medical Officer for Welsh Government, joined a Main Stage discussion on Genomics, Strategy and the Next Decade of UK Life Sciences.

Professor Steve Conlan, Professor of Molecular and Cell Biology at Swansea University and Chair of the ATW Research, Development and Innovation Group, delivered a presentation on Advanced Therapies Wales – Driving National Collaboration and Innovation in Advanced Therapies.

Dr Sian Morgan, Head of Innovation Programmes at the All Wales Medical Genomics Laboratory, spoke on the Cancer Diagnostics Stage, discussing the role of liquid biopsy within NHS cancer diagnostic pathways and its transformative impact on diagnostic approaches.

Vicki Heath, Chief Healthcare Science Officer for the Welsh Government, addressed Healthcare Disparities and the Impact of Workforce Diversity on the Patient Population on the Live Lounge Stage.

Hannah Crocker from the NHS Wales Joint Commissioning Committee, and a member of our extended team, spoke on the Advanced Therapies Stage, exploring what makes advanced therapies different, the challenges and opportunities they present, and the importance of real-world data in guiding decision-making.

Finally, Rhys Vaughan, Genomics Consent Manager at Wales Gene Park, presented on the Biodata Stage, sharing insights into the development of a national consent mechanism for healthcare data acquisition and what this means for the future of biodata-driven research and care.

We’re already looking forward to returning next year!