Early detection is one of the most powerful tools we have to fight cancer. It can mean the difference between a chance at life and a terminal diagnosis. The Daniel Kim Lab at UCSC aims to develop a non-invasive, early cancer detection platform based on the analysis of RNA in a patient's blood or plasma sample. We are currently researching, profiling, and characterizing novel RNA biomarkers of known cancer types that can be used to help clinicians diagnose cancer earlier and more accurately. Using handheld nanopore sequencing technology, we analyze cancer-specific RNA in blood samples to enable non-invasive, accessible screening.
Many cancers go undetected in patients until it is too late to properly treat, with only a 4% survival rate in stage IV cancers (NIH Annual Report to the Nation). Being able to catch and diagnose the disease early dramatically increases the chance of survival to up to over 50%. We hope to give patients a fighting chance through our current development of noninvasive "liquid biopsies" in the Daniel Kim Lab. We plan to develop diagnostic approaches that rely on the analysis of biomarker molecules present in human blood plasma to detect the disease, providing a less invasive way to screen patients for cancer.
Your support will directly fund the development of this groundbreaking technology. Join us in the fight against cancer.
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