UK Tech Development Company Introduces Low-Cost Near-Patient Disease Detector

Think Tricorder of Star Trek fame: the CliniHub device developed by Cambridge Consultants in conjunction with Xen Biosciences Inc. uses Time Resolved Fluorescence technology to test for cancer and other diseases.

“There have been immense advances in surgical and pharmaceutical technology in recent years,” says Simon Burnell, Head of Diagnostics at technology product development firm Cambridge Consultants. But “near-patient or home diagnostics is still mainly limited to pregnancy and glucose testing.” Cambridge Consultants aims to change that thanks to Time Resolved Fluorescence (TRF), an enabling technology developed by the consultancy that can diagnose cancer, heart disease and other far-reaching medical conditions in minutes. TRF provides sensitivity that is more than four orders of magnitude greater than what can be achieved with existing tests conducted in labs. This new generation of high-sensitivity, rapid diagnostic tests can detect a problem far earlier than current methods and do so in the convenience of a doctor’s office or even at home.

Current self-diagnostic tests, such as home pregnancy kits, do not demand the sensitivity requirements of some clinical tests because the biomarker is present in significant amounts. However, Cambridge Consultants’ TRF technology allows a range of other biomarkers to be measured that are present in smaller quantities. The technology platform combines a novel spectroscopy technique with an advanced electronic detector to deliver a highly sensitive diagnostic test.

“Our TRF technology can deliver the sensitivity required to satisfy the demand for earlier diagnosis and the detection of a wide range of biomarkers in a simple-to-administer format,” says Burnell. “Moreover, the technology is in a position for a rapid transition to a consumer product, meaning consumers could be seeing the first of the new generation of tests on shelves in 18 months’ time.”

Cambridge Consultants has already demonstrated the detection of a cardiac disease marker and is continuing to develop other tests.

Tags: Cambridge Consultants, Time Resolved Fluorescence, Tricorder