52North appoints industry leader John Jeans CBE as Chair

John brings extensive leadership experience in medical technology, diagnostics, and global healthcare innovation. He currently Chairs Histoindex Pty and the Digital Health and Care Innovation Center and is Co-Chair of the Singapore Government’s Diagnostics Hub. His previous leadership positions include Chair of Imanova Ltd (acquired by Invicro) and the UK BioCentre, as well as Board roles at Renishaw plc (LSE: RSW; £2bn market cap), Alliance Medical, and Prometic Life Sciences Inc. 

As a recognised leader in the field, John served as Deputy Chief Executive of the UK Medical Research Council and was appointed by the Prime Minister as the UK’s Life Science Champion for Medical Technology in 2014. John’s contributions to science and healthcare have been honoured with a CBE in 2012 and the Singapore Public Service Medal in 2021.

“I am delighted to be joining 52North at such a pivotal time,” said John Jeans. “Their low-cost, patient-centred platform technology offers great opportunity to deliver important diagnostics for major unmet needs in urgent care. In the case of Neutrocheck®, I am excited about the impact this could have in terms of quality of life for cancer patients. I look forward to working with this exceptional team to grow, scale, and deliver on the company’s goals.” 

John’s appointment follows a period of significant growth for 52North, who have a growing 20-person team, and an expanding portfolio of patient-driven innovations. The company has raised $11 million in funding to date, including $6 million in recent months, with investment led by KHP Ventures and Cedars-Sinai Intellectual Property Co, the venture arm of the California-based hospital. In December, the company shared their appointment to the highly competitive NATO DIANA Accelerator, and celebrated the signing of a strategic collaboration with a global pharmaceutical company. 

“We are thrilled to welcome John at a very important time for 52North,” said Umaima Ahmad, CEO and co-founder of 52North. “His distinguished expertise in the field will be invaluable as we scale and deliver our solutions across core markets, including Europe, the US, and beyond.”