Turning breakthroughs into real-world recovery
A historic new initiative from Spinal Research is bringing hope to life for people living with paralysis. The Spinal Research Recovery Alliance unites paralysed people, scientists, clinicians and industry partners in a UK-first partnership to get proven spinal repair treatments from the lab to real-world recovery.
And with UK regulatory approval now secured for the first function-restoring treatment for chronic spinal cord injury, recovery after paralysis is no longer a dream. It’s becoming a reality.
Backed by a £1 million fundraising campaign, the Recovery Alliance will fund the real-world testing of breakthrough treatments, expand UK clinical trials and create digital tools like the Spinal Research Clinical Trial Tracker to ensure people with spinal cord injuries are right at the heart of progress.
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Sign up to find out more about the Recovery Alliance, the Spinal Research Clinical Trial Tracker, and how you can get involved.
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Connect with the latest clinical trials, research developments, and opportunities to participate.
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Receive news and progress from Spinal Research including the latest about the Recovery Alliance.What the Recovery Alliance will deliver
The Spinal Research Recovery Alliance is designed to remove barriers to innovation, creating a best practice platform and process for the real-world testing of exciting new therapies and treatments.
For the first time, paralysed people, scientists, clinicians and industry partners are working together to turn pioneering science into real-world recovery for people living daily with a spinal cord injury.
By connecting the spinal cord injured community directly with breakthrough research, rehabilitation opportunities and emerging therapies, the Recovery Alliance will accelerate the rollout of proven spinal repair technologies across the UK at speed and scale.
Trial Tracker, your chance to join clinical trials
The Recovery Alliance isn’t just about funding research, it’s about putting people living with paralysis at the heart of the recovery process. That’s why we’ve created Trial Tracker, a simple, powerful service that connects you directly to clinical trials.
The Recovery Alliance aims to raise £1m in its first year. This first phase will include a multi-centre pilot study of Onward Medical’s ARC-EX spinal cord stimulation system at four leading rehabilitation centres, a vital step toward integrating this new technology into everyday recovery programmes.
With Trial Tracker, you can:
- Discover opportunities to join UK-based clinical trials and pilot studies.
- Stay informed about the latest breakthroughs and rehabilitation technologies across the globe.
- Shape the future by contributing to trials that will help researchers refine treatments.
Every trial brings us closer to turning science into everyday recovery. Trial Tracker ensures no one is left behind, because progress should be powered by community.
Are you an SCI professional?
Find out more about the Recovery Alliance and help shape the future of spinal cord injury recovery through collaboration, insight, and shared expertise.
Register your interestDriving progress, powered by community
With more breakthrough treatments on the horizon, the Recovery Alliance will expand UK clinical trials, launch new multi-centre pilot studies and bring global industry partners into the UK to accelerate the adoption of next-generation rehabilitation technologies.
Central to this movement is empowering people living with paralysis. Through tools like the Trial Tracker, the Alliance connects people directly to trials and captures real-world recovery data, ensuring lived experience shapes the future of spinal cord treatment.
Recovery after paralysis is no longer a distant hope. It’s becoming a reality, faster than ever.
The science is here. The time is now.
Together, we will cure paralysis.
Recovery Alliance FAQs
What is the Spinal Research Recovery Alliance?
A national initiative led by Spinal Research to bring together paralysed people, clinicians, researchers and industry partners to deliver cutting-edge spinal cord injury treatments at speed and scale.
Why is the launch of Spinal Research Recovery Alliance important now?
Several groundbreaking therapies for paralysis have been cleared for use in Europe with UK regulatory approval now given for the first dedicated treatment for a spinal cord injury, the ARC-EX spinal cord stimulation system.
The next five years present an unprecedented opportunity to change what’s possible for people living with spinal cord injuries. Breakthrough therapies are nearing clinical reality, and frontier technologies from AI and robotics to gene therapy, are creating bold new pathways toward repair and recovery.
The Spinal Research Recovery Alliance is leading this transformation to drive innovation and real-world impact at speed and scale.
Who is part of the Spinal Research Recovery Alliance?
Partners include researchers, clinicians, rehabilitation centres, industry partners and the spinal cord injured community, under the leadership of Spinal Research.
What will the Spinal Research Recovery Alliance pilot study do?
Backed by an initial £1 million campaign, the Recovery Alliance will fund real-world pilot studies, expand clinical trials, and attract industry and international partnerships to the UK.
Funded initially with £100,000, the pilot will initially test the ARC-EX therapy at four UK rehabilitation centres, assessing its real-world impact outside a traditional clinical trial.
What is the ARC-EX system?
A breakthrough therapy that delivers targeted, programmed electrical stimulation through the skin to the spinal cord when combined with activity based rehabilitation.
Clinical trial results – including a UK pilot funded by Spinal Research – have proved its potential to increase hand sensation and strength in chronic incomplete tetraplegics (C2-C8 inclusive).
The ARC-EX has now received UK regulatory clearance.
How will the Spinal Research Recovery Alliance help people living with paralysis, both in the UK and across the globe?
It will speed up access to proven and emerging treatments and expand clinical opportunities across the UK.
How much funding is being raised?
The Recovery Alliance aims to raise £1 million in its first year to support further studies and UK clinical trials as well as developing digital platforms that will bring people living with spinal cord injuries at the heart of progress towards a cure for paralysis.
What is the Spinal Research Trial Tracker service?
A key part of the Alliance is the Trial Tracker, a service designed to connect people living with spinal cord injury to clinical research trials. Trial Tracker helps individuals find and sign up for studies that match their profile, keeps them informed about new opportunities, and supports researchers in recruiting suitable participants. This means people affected by spinal cord injury can play an active role in shaping future treatments and benefit from the latest advances.
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