SBIR Phase II: Early Detection of Pancreatic Cancer using Multiplex Protein Profiling

Award ID: 2026113

The broader impact/commercial potential of this Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II project is to improve clinical outcomes and quality-of-life for pancreatic cancer patients. Only 10% of pancreatic cancer survive five years after diagnosis because most cases are detected at later stages when clinical interventions are relatively ineffective. Earlier detection improves interventions, prevents unnecessary procedures arising from uncertain diagnosis, and leads to health system cost savings. Roughly 5 million individuals in the US are at higher risk, but there is no screening test available today for earlier stages, a surveillance market estimated at $3 B. This project will develop a diagnostic test for surveillance of people at high risk for developing pancreatic cancer, with methods potentially applicable to other types of cancer and other diseases. This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II project will advance a technology using a small blood sample to detect the functional state of multiple biological signaling pathways known to participate in cancer inception and progression. This technology can analyze these low abundance proteins at a low cost suitable for a widely adopted surveillance test. A purpose-built bioinformatic system analyses and compares the bio-signature identified by the assay across many individuals. This Phase II project will optimize the panel of protein targets in the assay to detect high-performing differential bio-signatures for early stages of the disease, and it will enhance the machine-learning-based matching methodology. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

NSF Program Director: Henry Ahn