Access to an accurate and low-cost Multi-Cancer-Early Detection test that does not require a doctor’s visit or lab testing is key to preventing late-stage diagnoses.

Alumnus Billy Boyle

Awarded by the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H) for the Platform Optimizing SynBio for Early Intervention and Detection in Oncology (POSEIDON) program, the aim is to deliver a first-in-class synthetic sensor-based Multi-Cancer-Early Detection (MCED) test for Stage I detection of 30+ solid tumours.

The MCED test, made available over the counter, will use breath and urine samples that can be performed in the home. 

The goal of POSEIDON is to enable accurate, low-cost, accessible cancer screening for all Americans^[1]. 

Owlstone Medical is the global leader in Breath Biopsy® for applications in early disease detection and precision medicine. The company will work in partnership with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Boston University, Georgia Tech Research Corporation, Qurin B.V., and Planned Systems International Inc with the aim to deliver accurate, low-cost cancer screening for 30+ solid tumours to Americans aged 18 and older. 

The project involves the inhalation of a mix of pan-cancer and tumour-specific synthetic sensors from a single-use inhaler, which then circulate throughout the body and accumulate on the surface of cancer cells.

The reporters produced by the sensors are either DNA-based which act as a readable barcode, or a set of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), supporting the detection of 36 cancers in total. These will be collected at-home or in clinic in urine samples and from breath respectively using portable collection and analysis devices.

Results will be uploaded in real time to electronic health records (EHR) for rapid review by healthcare professionals, integrating seamlessly into clinical practice and digitally enabled care.

Owlstone Medical says this unique approach offers significant advantages over competing technologies including:

• Boosting the signal to enhance test performance such that cancer is reliably detectable from early stage.
• Enabling simple and non-invasive sample collection at home.
• Rapid result generation and EHR integration.
• A low-cost manufacturing model such that economics are not a barrier to adoption of the technology as the new standard of care for early cancer detection. 

Billy Boyle, co-founder and CEO at Owlstone Medical, said: “Access to an accurate and low-cost MCED test that does not require a doctor’s visit or laboratory testing is key to preventing late-stage diagnoses.

“This award validates both breath as a diagnostic approach and Owlstone’s EVOC® probes as a reporter technology to overcome the shortcomings and challenges that have held back early cancer detection previously.

“We are grateful to ARPA-H for the opportunity to bring transformative MCED testing to every American within the next decade.” 

Ross Uhrich, DMD, MBA, POSEIDON Program Manager, said: “The field of cancer screening needs a revolution, and POSEIDON stands ready to deliver. The programme allows for a better future by creating broadly accessible, at-home tests that will accurately detect 30+ cancers as early as Stage I, when tumours are still small and the chances of survival are high.

“This revolutionary funding effort brings together experts in synthetic biology, oncology, medical devices, big cancer data and commercialisation to create test kits that will transform how and when people are screened for cancer.

“POSEIDON will allow every American the opportunity to test themselves long before they have symptoms and at their discretion. POSEIDON’s rigorous performance metrics and translational focus reflect our clear commitment to bring these technologies safely and directly to all Americans.”

About Owlstone Medical

Billy Boyle is one of the original co-founders of Owlstone Inc, founded in 2004 as a spin-out from the Department of Engineering at the University of Cambridge.

Owlstone Medical was spun out from Owlstone Inc in 2016 to develop and commercialise FAIMS in medical applications.

Billy began to focus on the medical applications of FAIMS technology after his wife Kate was diagnosed and later died of colon cancer as a result of a late diagnosis. 

Adapted from an Owlstone Medical press release.

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^[1] Almost 40% of Americans will develop cancer in their lifetimes and cancer is the second leading cause of death in the U.S. The number of new cancer diagnoses in 2025 is estimated to be more than 2 million, with over 618,000 cancer deaths, equivalent to almost 1,700 deaths every day. The patient-related economic burden of cancer in 2019 was more than $21 billion in the U.S., of which treatment costs are by far the largest component. Critically, costs associated with late-stage diagnoses are much higher than early-stage, however cancer is difficult to detect early when it is most curable.