The Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT) has granted $3.7 million to Rice University researchers to fund an innovative cancer diagnostics program.
"The BioScience Research Collaborative and Rice have provided the ideal setting to launch the Texas Cancer Diagnostics Pipeline Consortium," said John McDevitt, Ph.D., director of the BioScience Research Collaborative lab and a pioneer in the creation of microfluidic devices for biomedical testing. "This Rice-led cancer initiative brings together the dream team of Texas clinicians for oral cancer, prostate cancer, and ovarian cancer."
The work is made possible by McDevitt's development of a cost-effective nanobiochip that can provide patients with early warning of the onset of disease, cutting the time and cost of treatment. The chips are based on microprocessor technology and can be programmed to quickly find specific biomarkers in blood, saliva, and urine to diagnose cancers, HIV, and heart disease. A human trial of the chip is currently testing patients' saliva for signs of a heart attack at Houston's Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center, in collaboration with Baylor College of Medicine.
CPRIT is a state-funded agency charged by Texas voters with issuing $3 billion in bonds over 10 years to fund grants for cancer research and prevention.
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