A revolutionary medical-imaging tool that can instantly detect cancer has earned La Trobe University research a place among finalists in the Universities Australia 2024 Shaping Australia Awards.
La Trobe spin-out company AlleSense is one of five finalists in the Problem Solver Award category of the awards, thanks to the NanoMslide, which aims to tackle the real-world problem of early-stage breast cancer misdiagnosis.
The NanoMslide was developed by La Trobe researchers and AlleSense co-founders Professor Brian Abbey and Dr Eugeniu Balaur, alongside Professor Belinda Parker from the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre.
Unlike a typical microscope slide that requires chemical staining, the NanoMSlide interacts with light and creates an immediate colour change so abnormal cells stand out among healthy cells.
Every year across the world, 2.3 million women are being diagnosed with breast cancer. Yet misdiagnosis rates for early-stage breast cancer are as high as one in three.
The NanoMSlide has the potential to tackle the real-world problem of early-stage breast cancer misdiagnosis through a multitude of benefits.
From a clinical perspective, the NanoMSlide enables faster pathology turnaround times with streamlined processes, giving health professionals the confidence that they will give patients a timely and accurate early diagnosis.
In the presence of early-stage cancer detection, health professionals will be better able to manage the disease's trajectory and plan more appropriate and less invasive treatment therapies for patients.
On a human level, the NanoMSlide provides a cost-effective diagnostic tool that builds greater accessibility to cancer care, as well as the certainty that diagnosis is accurate and timely, leading to overall enhanced health outcomes.
NanoMSlide's technology could one day be applied to all types of cancer, meaning that detection can be done at the point of care, including the doctor's surgery or in the future even at home.
This technology will particularly benefit regional communities as diagnostic testing and diagnosis can be done in local clinics, helping to further bridge the healthcare gap for regional communities.
NanoMslide is one of 15 Shaping Australia finalists, chosen from 101 national submissions.
Voting in the People's Choice voting is open until 19 January 2025. Winners will be announced on 25 February 2025.
