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Four projects selected for WARF Accelerator Oncology Diagnostics Challenge

11.30.23 | News & Announcements

$100K in grant funds to advance new tools for preventing and treating cancer

CONTACT:
Jeanan Yasiri Moe
Director of Strategic Communications and Public Affairs
[email protected] | (608) 960-9892

MADISON, Wis. – The Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation has announced that four projects have been selected to receive development funding through the WARF Accelerator Oncology Diagnostics Challenge Grant.

The grant invited submissions for new technologies focused on biomarkers and other tools that help researchers and clinicians evaluate strategies for cancer prevention and treatment.  From new assays to medical imaging tools, these projects may improve cancer patient outcomes throughout Wisconsin and beyond.

The selected projects are led by the following teams:

  • Reid Alisch, Mahua Dey and Isabelle Renteria (Neurological Surgery) for a liquid biopsy for early detection of glioblastoma
  • Diego Hernando and Greg Simchick (Radiology) for MRI-based oncology diagnostics with optimized quantification of diffusion and perfusion
  • Muhammed Murtaza and Sarah Russell (Surgery) for a biomarker-based, minimally invasive, non-blood, liquid biopsy assay for pancreatic cancer screening
  • Pallavi Tiwari and Olivia Krebs (Radiology) for integrated multi-scale prognostic signatures via early fusion of radiomics, histology and genomics for outcome prediction in cancer

“New technologies for diagnosing cancer or tracking disease progression have the potential to improve outcomes for millions of patients in the U.S. and around the world,” says Erik Iverson, CEO of WARF. “We’re delighted to champion UW-Madison innovators tackling the challenge of combating cancer.”

Projects not selected for funding through the Accelerator Challenge Grants may still be connected to other supportive resources within WARF.

About WARF

The Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation (WARF) helps steward the cycle of research, discovery, commercialization and investment for the University of Wisconsin–Madison and provides annual support to the university to advance research and innovation.  Founded in 1925 as an independent, nonprofit foundation, WARF manages more than 2,000 patents and an investment portfolio as it funds university research, obtains patents for campus discoveries and licenses inventions to industry. For more information, visit warf.org and view WARF’s Cycle of Innovation.

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