Radisens Diagnostics has been awarded funding to develop portable diagnostic instruments for the early screening of various cancers at point-of-care.

This funding was awarded as part of a large scale European nano research consortium led by Trinity College Dublin (TCD). TCD’s Institute of Molecular Medicine (IMM) and School of Medicine, in partnership with it’s nanoscience research institute, CRANN, will lead this pan-European team that has attracted funding worth approximately €12m, to develop new nanomedical technology which will enable the early and rapid diagnosis of cancer.

 Radisens (www.radisens.com ) will concentrate on developing highly sensitive, portable diagnostic platforms, targeting early cancer screening in point-of-care environments such as GP clinics, community centres and outpatient departments.

Professor Dermot Kelleher, Head of TCD School of Medicine and IMM Director said:  “This is a huge vote of confidence and recognises Irish leadership in the cutting edge field of nanomedicine.  This research programme will address some of the most important questions in human medicine relating to diagnosis and treatment of cancer, using 21st century experience and know-how in nanotechnology, and we are looking forward to the time when patients will benefit from these innovative technologies.”

“This is a huge endorsement in the innovative platform technology we are developing at Radisens” said Jerry O’Brien, CEO of Radisens. “Developing a portable handheld instrument to screen for various cancers using a pin-prick of blood will add significantly to early cancer diagnosis and increased survival rates”.

About Radisens

Radisens develops portable diagnostic platforms for point-of-care, resulting in rapid and reliable laboratory-grade blood testing across multiple assays. Radisens is miniaturizing gold-standard clinical laboratory diagnostic instrumentation and developing a consummable suite covering immunoassay, haematology and molecular diagnostic tests. No solution on the market offers a multiplexed, quantitative platform for blood testing across such a wide range of applications in a single portable, battery-operated instrument. This patent pending disruptive technology will drive a step change towards ubiquitous rapid handheld analysis in GP clinics, outpatient and emergency room settings.

About the Cancer Research Programme

TCD School of Medicine and CRANN Principal Investigator, Professor Yuri Volkov, will lead a European team of researchers to create advanced medical diagnostic devices, enabled by nanotechnology, which will allow the early and rapid diagnosis of cancer.   Importantly the new technology when developed will also enable the early detection of specific cancer types, leading to improved patient care. The programme will be led by a team of clinical medical researchers from St James Hospital Campus, in collaboration with the nanoscience Institute CRANN at TCD.