Owlstone Medical, a health tech company from Cambridge that has developed a breath-based early diagnostics device for cancer, has been awarded a research prize of up to $49.1m (£36.5m).
The funding has been awarded by the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health, an agency within the US government’s Department of Health, for the company’s Platform Optimising SynBio for Early Intervention and Detection in Oncology (POSEIDON) programme.
Through POSEIDON, the company aims to develop synthetic sensor-based multi-cancer-early detection (MCED) tests for stage 1 diagnosis of more than 30 types of cancer using only breath and urine samples, performable at home.
The field of cancer screening needs a revolution, and POSEIDON stands ready to deliver. The program allows for a better future by creating broadly accessible, at-home tests,” said Ross Uhrich, programme manager at POSEIDON.
“This revolutionary funding effort brings together experts in synthetic biology, oncology, medical devices, big cancer data, and commercialisation to create test kits that will transform how and when people are screened for cancer.”
Owlstone’s project is being developed in partnership with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Boston University, Georgia Tech Research Corporation, Qurin B.V., and Planned Systems International Inc.
“Access to an accurate and low-cost MCED test that does not require a doctor’s visit or laboratory testing is key to preventing late-stage diagnoses,” said Owlstone co-founder and chief executive Billy Boyle.
