SBIR Phase I: Cryogenic probe development and testing for post-lumpectomy margin ablation treatment

The broader impact/commercial potential of this Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project is a novel cryoablation treatment for improving the outcomes for patients undergoing a lumpectomy procedure. The system aims to provide a significantly more effective treatment for treating breast cancer following surgical intervention, enabling more rapid healing and fewer side effects than current radiation treatments. The technology aims to serve as a standard of care in the lumpectomy market projected to reach $7.5 billion in 2027 and address a leading cause of female morbidity and mortality. _x000D_ _x000D_ This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project seeks to explore the feasibility of the company’s proprietary cryoablation system to kill breast cancer cells with high (greater than99%) accuracy in preclinical testing. This project will validate the design using an accepted animal cellular model of tumors. The project aims to design and de-risk the probe design to ensure optimal contact and thermal transmissivity with the tumor cells in a fixed experimental setting in vitro. The project will be designed to ensure clinical usability in under an hour at the time of cancer removal. The results may serve as the foundation for furthering preclinical product research and development prior to human use._x000D_ _x000D_ This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.