iCellate awarded €2.4 million with Horizon 2020

The money will be used to expand the availability of CellMate® diagnostic test to specialized cancer diagnostic centers and private health clinics across Europe via the DeteCTCs consortium.

The prevalence of cancer on a global basis is estimated to double by 2035. Early detection and intervention is recognized as the most effective way to treat cancer and improve patient outcomes.

Today’s standard methods for early detection include mammograms, Pap smears, colonoscopies, MRI, and tissue/tumor biopsy. These methods, however, have very limited efficacy for detecting many poorly accessible cancers such as pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) and ovarian cancer (OC). Similar challenges exist in detecting individual tumor cells, which may exist in a patient for many years before they become detectable by conventional methods.

In the Horizon 2020 project, the DeteCTCs consortium will fast-track the development and market entry of iCellate’s multi-cancer blood test, CellMate®, for early detection of breast, ovarian, and pancreatic cancers.

– Imagine if you could detect and treat cancer before symptoms occur. If this becomes reality, cancer will not need to be such a dreadful disease, says Pelle Redare, CEO of iCellate.

– We are very excited to be a part of the DeteCTC consortium, says Jonathan Sheldon, Senior Vice President of QIAGEN Digital Insights. It’s imperative for the successful adoption of novel tests that the "Sample to Insight" experience is seamless. Easy to adopt, easy to use and easy to interpret for any testing lab. Working together we can bring our experiences, skills, NGS chemistry and software to make this happen.

About iCellate Medical
iCellate is a spin-off from the Karolinska Institute in Sweden. The life science company has its offices and laboratory in Stockholm’s Hagalund, where the company performs its cancer diagnostic services. The company has received several awards and scientific grants from, for example, Roche, Eurostars, Vinnova, and AFA Insurance.