Tool development and validation studies for commercialisation of CanCan Diagnostics products

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Between United Kingdom, United States and European Union there is close to 200 million dogs, from which 30-50% will develop cancer in their lifetime. Currently this disease is diagnosed and monitored through costly, invasive and time-consuming procedures such as advanced imaging or biopsy.To date, there is a very limited number of options for minimally invasive screening, early detection and monitoring of cancer in dogs.Commercialization of a precise minimally invasive multi-cancer diagnostic test will have an immense influence on:* Animal welfare and the well-being of the animals' owners.* Increasing veterinarian productivity and potentially appointment scheduling* Overall improvement of academic research in veterinary / companion animal genetics.* Reducing carbon footprint - obtaining blood sample takes c. 5 minutes in the majority of animals compared to 2-3 hours for advanced imaging.We have developed cell-free DNA-based diagnostic approach which analyses selected recurrently mutated genes in various canine cancers and allows precise disease detection, even if small quantities of mutated DNA are present. This type of assay has the potential to revolutionize the field of veterinary oncology.The test will allow access to disease monitoring in patients previously unable to afford the current costly approach, potentially allowing for earlier intervention and prolonged survival. This is a highly scalable project targeting a rapidly growing international market and the very important intersection of computer science, genetic data analysis which can have an immense impact on drug development for both canine and human cancers.