How Vodafone aims to speed up cancer research

With one in three Kiwis affected by cancer in their lifetime, Vodafone and the Vodafone Foundation have teamed up to launch an innovative app which harnesses the processing power of your smartphone to speed up cancer research.

Research has begun to understand cancer based on a patient's DNA profile, but hampering the speed of that genetic profiling is the lack of access to computer processing power.

The Vodafone DreamLab app turns mobiles nationwide into a virtual supercomputer network to crunch complex genetic data speeding up the search for a cure, all while you sleep.

While the Vodafone DreamLab app can be used by every Kiwi with a smartphone, for Vodafone mobile customers there's the added reassurance of knowing that you won't use up any of the data on your plan or be charged in any way to join in on the New Zealand network.

The app also works on WiFi.

Vodafone CEO Russell Stanners says it's all about connecting for good through the power of the Vodafone network.

Stanners states, "Finding a cure is so important for all of us and the beauty of the Vodafone DreamLab app is that the more Kiwis who download and use it, the faster it crunches data, and the closer researchers can get to find a cure.

"To kick it off, we're giving our staff an extra hour of cancer-solving sleep by starting work one hour later next Friday (18 May).

"We're calling it National Sleep-in Day, and we'd love as many businesses and individual Kiwis to join us as possible either starting late that day or encouraging teams to download the app.

Vodafone Foundation Manager Lani Evans said it's been heartening to see high-profile support pour in for the Vodafone DreamLab app.

Evans states "We've had Kiwi companies' large and small sign up to support the Vodafone DreamLab app, and we are also absolutely thrilled to have Kiwi legend Anika Moa, complete with fluffy slippers, throw her weight behind our National Sleep-in Day.

"DreamLab was developed in partnership with the Australian-based Garvan Institute of Medical Research, which has pioneered world-class cancer genomics research.

"Based on our tests adding just 33 new devices to the Vodafone DreamLab app enables the analysis of the same amount of data as quickly as a single CPU core of a typical research organisation's in-house supercomputer."