I-Corps: Rapid, Low Cost Point-of-Care Microfluidic Cancer Screening Device

这个i-Corps项目的更广泛的影响/商业潜力是开发一种能够及早发现癌症的活组织检查方法。癌细胞通常可以在最初被发现之前生长和形成肿瘤近十年。该项目专注于生产一种用于癌症早期筛查的微创和低成本的护理点设备。该设备旨在帮助更早地发现特定的癌症，从而在全球范围内改善患者的预后。如果成功，该产品预计将产生重大的经济影响，因为减少了癌症治疗的医疗支出，并改善了劳动力的健康。这个i-Corps项目是基于开发一种用于癌症早期筛查和检测的护理点血液活检设备。该技术由两个主要部分组成：(1)一次性微流控平台，(2)电子和硬件外壳。微流控平台从患者身上分离出微小的全血样本，并进行有针对性的酶联免疫吸附分析。当循环中的肿瘤细胞上皮细胞黏附分子表达达80%(即乳腺癌、前列腺癌、膀胱癌或胰腺癌)时，该检测方法会产生化学发光信号。一次性微流控平台被装载到桌面大小的外壳中，该外壳容纳用于以预先编程的顺序自主控制血液样本的流体处理(分类、混合、冲洗、传感)的电子设备和硬件。包含在外壳中的光传感器检测由分析产生的化学发光信号。通过减少医务人员通常需要的时间和技能，患者的预后可以得到改善，筛查成本可以显著降低。该设备的尺寸、成本和易用性非常适合临床环境中的护理点式诊断。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The broader impact/commercial potential of this I-Corps project is the development of a biopsy screening method that enables early detection of cancer. Cancer cells can often grow and form tumors for nearly ten years before they are initially detected. This project focuses on producing a minimally invasive and cost-effective, point of care device for early cancer screening. This device is intended to help detect specific cancers earlier, thereby improving patient outcomes globally. If successful, the product is expected to have major economic impacts as a result of reducing healthcare expenditures for cancer treatment and improving the health of the workforce.This I-Corps project is based on the development of a point of care blood biopsy device for early screening and detection of cancer. The technology consists of two primary components: (1) a disposable microfluidics platform, and (2) an electronics and hardware enclosure. The microfluidic platform fractionates a tiny whole blood sample drawn from the patient and processes a targeted, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The assay produces a chemiluminescent signal in response to the presence of circulating tumor cells that have epithelial cell adhesion molecule expression of 80% (i.e. breast, prostate, bladder, or pancreatic cancer). The disposable microfluidic platform is loaded into a table-top sized enclosure that houses the electronics and hardware used to autonomously control fluid handling (sorting, mixing, flushing, sensing) of the blood sample in a preprogrammed sequence. A photosensor contained in the enclosure detects the chemiluminescent signal produced by the assay. By reducing the time and skill typically required by medical personnel, patient outcomes can be improved and the cost of screening can be significantly reduced The size, cost, and ease of use of the device is well suited for point-of-care diagnostics in a clinical setting.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.