Partnership to revolutionise cancer diagnostic

The University of Adelaide has partnered with medical technology company Sienna Cancer Diagnostics in an exclusive worldwide licencing agreement to develop a unique cancer probe with the potential to detect a sugar molecule only present in cancer cells.

University of Adelaide and Griffith University researchers have engineered a unique protein – SubB2M -  that can detect cancer by using liquid biopsies, immunoassays, circulating tumor cell assays and PET imaging.

As part of the exclusive licence, Sienna will collaborate with the University of Adelaide and Griffith University’s Institute for Glycomics to provide the data needed to commercialise cancer screening and diagnostic assays based on SubB2M.

The first stage will focus on developing a biopsy assay for cancer screening and monitoring suitable for use in hospital pathology laboratories. It is anticipated that this will take 12-18 months to complete.