Investor focus: Macmillan Ventures 

In this Investor Focus, Felix Litzkow, Head of Macmillan Ventures, reflects on the role of charities to shape healthcare innovation, and shares how the fund’s targeted investment approach supports early-stage health companies to scale digital solutions for cancer pathways. 

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Macmillan Ventures sits at the intersection of charity, digital technology solutions and venture investment. As the investment arm of Macmillan Cancer Support, it utilises the charity’s expertise, networks and influence to back startups developing solutions with the potential to transform cancer care across the UK.  

As part of the HIN Investment Update, Felix Litzkow, Head of Macmillan Ventures, shares why the charity chose to enter venture investing, how it supports founders beyond funding, and why patient impact and health equity remains central to every investment decision.

Investing to influence the future of cancer care 

Macmillan Ventures recognises the growing role of digital technology in care delivery and was established to ensure cancer pathways benefit from this innovation. By investing in early-stage companies, Macmillan Ventures aims to improve cancer care, shift care into communities and reduce health inequalities.

Technology companies that have the potential to increase health equity and access to cancer care are already out there… By investing in startups early, we feel we can have a high degree of influence and can help those startups build those technology companies in a way that the NHS can actually adopt.

The pilot Impact Investment Fund was formally launched in 2023, with £3.5 million invested in eight digital health companies by early 2026. This portfolio features two DigitalHealth.London Accelerator alumni: Panakeia, which develops AI-enabled solutions for cancer diagnosis; and Perci Health, a virtual platform of support for people living with and beyond cancer. Now, Macmillan Ventures is building a second Impact Investment Fund of £30 million, which will be used to invest in more innovations over the next five years. For 2026, the fund is on track to invest £4 million at Seed and Series A. 

More than capital: the value of a charity investor  

Portfolio companies not only benefit from investment, but also ongoing support to accelerate the growth and impact of products for cancer pathways. The team helps founders connect with other sources of capital, including grant programmes and investors who recognise the value of Macmillan’s endorsement, as well as making connections to the charity’s professional networks and lived-experience communities.

Patient and public involvement and engagement (PPIE) and lived experience in particular provides companies with a unique opportunity to co-design products with people affected by cancer. Through the charity’s established networks, founders can build patient insight into the development process from an early stage, helping to ensure innovations are accessible, relevant and capable of benefiting a wider range of people.

This association with a trusted national charity can also help young companies build recognition, attract partners and unlock additional investment opportunities. Some early examples from portfolio companies demonstrate that for every £1 invested from Macmillan, they have gone onto catalysed £10 from other investors. As Felix explains: “Investors have responded really well to seeing Macmillan invest in a company and having that validation.”

[Macmillian Ventures supports startups to] add money and add brand equity. If I only achieved that, I think that’s already a tremendous value add to the company.

A growing role for charities in innovation  

Looking ahead, Felix sees significant potential for charities to play a more active role in shaping healthcare innovation. “Every charity, whatever their specific kind of mission is, needs to have a view of how the future of technology is going to impact on that mission…” he explains “…and then find a way to shape that trajectory of technology companies.”

While not every charity will establish a venture fund, he believes collaborative partnerships between charities and innovators can help to create solutions that work for more people, including brand trust, patient communities and clinical expertise.

For Macmillan Ventures, the ultimate goal is to ensure innovation translates into better outcomes and better access to cancer care. As new technologies continue to emerge, the fund’s approach reflects the role charities play in helping to guide innovation towards the people who need it most.

The benefit of those technologies will go to the many, not just a few.

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