Protein Ruler to Create Affordable Biosensor Diagnosis for the Many

Ovarian cancer is the most common malignancy of the female reproductive system worldwide, and the leading cause of death from

gynecological cancer. However, if diagnosed during the early stages, patients have a good prognosis, at around 90% 5-year survival

rate. Despite its lethality, there are currently no effective simple tests for diagnosis nor population-based screening techniques for

ovarian cancer. Emerging tests detecting cancer biomarkers have the potential for greatest impact for surveillance and early

detection, such as the FDA approved CA125 and HE4 biomarkers. Importantly, because the levels of these biomarkers are not the

same among all healthy females and increase with age, these tests should be quantitative. Current quantitative diagnostic tests for

CA125 and HE4 detection are expensive, require high-cost infrastructures and trained professionals. Therefore, there is an urgent

need for developing cheap, reliable, easy-to-use quantitative tests for ovarian cancer biomarkers. In this project, ground-breaking innovating research will give rise to novel technology, enabling the detection of cancer biomarkers in a manner that is quantitative, and yet

simple, portable and cheap.