CanSense - a Swansea company which has developed a blood test that aims to save lives by diagnosing bowel cancer at an early stage - has raised £1.5m from Mercia, the Development Bank of Wales and liquid biopsy company Nonacus.

CanSense’s test, which combines laser spectroscopy with artificial intelligence, is faster, less expensive and less invasive than a colonoscopy procedure and more acceptable for patients than a faecal blood detection kit. It could help detect bowel cancer at an early stage when it is much easier to treat and the chance of survival is much higher.