Seven million biopsy procedures are performed annually to diagnose cancer or collect tumor tissue for personalized therapy. Yet, due to inadequate biopsy tumor content, 1 in 5 biopsy procedures have to be repeated to confirm diagnosis, and thousands of patients can’t receive potentially life-saving therapies because of downstream test failures. If doctors can quickly test that a sample is insufficient they can collect more tissue immediately, but currently available tests are too slow and destructive and require dedicated personnel.

We will develop technology that re-envisions the way this testing is done by developing an Automated Digital Pathology Lab (ADPL) imaging system that updates th...

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Seven million biopsy procedures are performed annually to diagnose cancer or collect tumor tissue for personalized therapy. Yet, due to inadequate biopsy tumor content, 1 in 5 biopsy procedures have to be repeated to confirm diagnosis, and thousands of patients can’t receive potentially life-saving therapies because of downstream test failures. If doctors can quickly test that a sample is insufficient they can collect more tissue immediately, but currently available tests are too slow and destructive and require dedicated personnel.

We will develop technology that re-envisions the way this testing is done by developing an Automated Digital Pathology Lab (ADPL) imaging system that updates the traditional histology workflow, for the first time enabling users to go from the fresh sample directly to the histology image automatically and quickly. By making tissue adequacy testing fast, non-destructive, and fully automated, doctors can verify sample adequacy in less time with fewer personnel during the procedure, while there is still time to collect more tissue if needed.

By producing images that can be reviewed remotely, the ADPL system could be transformative for the 92.52% of Texas counties that contain medically-underserved rural institutions without on-site pathologists. The ADPL system would allow for remote assessment and guidance of biopsy procedures, empowering hospital systems in underserved communities to provide higher quality of care with limited personnel resources.

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