What it does
OncoALERT is a rapid, needle-free oral cancer test with 95% accuracy powered by nanotech, built on biodegradable paper (no plastics), and designed for dignity, low-cost access, and mass screening at home. No labs. No specialists. No delay. Just lives saved.
Your inspiration
It was during my medical internship in Dholai, a tiny village in Assam that I met Amit, a labourer and father of four, who welcomed me into his home like family. His 11yr old daughter Rani become like my own little sister, from playing "chupan-chupai" to braiding flowers in each other hairs. Weeks later, he died from a misdiagnosed oral lesion - an entirely preventable tragedy. Rani, had to dropped out of school to support her siblings. That moment rewired everything for me. OncoALERT wasn’t born in labs alone - it was born in grief, resilience, and the urgent need to rewrite that ending for families like Amit’s.
How it works
OncoALERT is a palm-sized, needle-free screening device that detects oral cancer in minutes using saliva. Users simply place the soft suction tip under the tongue; saliva is gently drawn into a paper-based microchannel, where it flows to a nanotech biosensing zone. There, salivary biomarkers react with gold nanoparticles via high-affinity molecular binding, producing a clear binary result-no lab, no specialist, no pain. 1.Nanotech Platform: Gold nanoparticles embedded in nitrocellulose bind cancer biomarkers with 95% accuracy, enabling rapid, reagent-free detection. 2.Paper-Based Format: Made from biodegradable cellulose, the device eliminates single-use plastics and uses capillary action for fluid transport-scalable, low-emission, and eco-safe. 3. Human-Centric Design: Compact, needleless, and easy to use for low-literacy, low-dexterity users-preserving dignity and enabling mass screening in underserved communities.
Design process
The design process of OncoALERT unfolded in two parallel tracks-scientific innovation and human-centered engineering. 1. Nanotech Biosensing Platform: We began in the translational science lab at THSTI, developing high-affinity binders via hybridoma technology. These were conjugated to 10nm gold nanoparticles, stabilized and optimized through over a year of iterative experimentation. The result: a robust, high-Kd biosensing platform with up to 95% detection accuracy. 2. Paper-Based Device Design: This was harder than the science. Instead of hypothesizing user needs, we travelled 15,000 km-from rural Dholai to AIIMS Delhi-interviewing nearly 1,000 people across socioeconomic, cultural, and physical ability spectrums. We designed for dignity: a compact, needleless, saliva-based device operable by anyone, even with low dexterity. To avoid plastic waste from mass deployment, we shifted to a biodegradable nitrocellulose format-safe for patients and the planet. Each prototype was refined through field feedback, ensuring OncoALERT is inclusive, scalable, and deployable at the last mile. Each prototype was refined through field feedback, ensuring OncoALERT is inclusive, scalable, and deployable at the last mile.
How it is different
The Gap We're Bridging In a world of advanced medical technology, a stark reality persists: no effective screening tool exists for oral cancer in clinical practice. Current solutions either miss the mark on accessibility or fail WHO's ASSURED criteria for point-of-care devices: - Viome: Takes 4-6 weeks, costs $600 - OralScan/Velscope/MukhParikshak: Merely illumination tools - UCLA's solution (Patent US20190040471A1): Limited to salivary mRNA profiling whereas OncoALERT is: 1.Cost: ₹80-100 vs. ₹50,00,000 for late-stage treatment 2. Accessibility: Anyone & Anywhere: Zero-equipment, field-deployable solution 3. Impact: 500x cost reduction for both insurers and patients Current market leader Sascan MedTech, holds just ~2% market share with their ₹5,00,000 device - highlighting not just a gap, but an urgent need for transformation.
Future plans
1.Market Focus: ₹10,080 Cr TAM targeting 55 Cr+ at-risk Indians 2.Commercial Strategy -B2G: 1.57 lakh PHCs/CHCs through government programs -B2B/D: ₹68,000 Cr insurance market via 48,486 hospitals and 1,000 labs -Future B2C: Retail through TATA 1mg, Apollo, and pharmacies 3.ISO/GMP CMOs compliant Mass Manufacturing 4.Launch Clinical Pilots with PGI Chandigarh & ESIC Faridabad & Regulatory Pathway: Class B, MD-12 CDSCO approvals secured 5.Rollout Strategy: Odisha & Assam via hub-and-spoke deployment 6.MVP Completion & Scale Pilot Manufacturing at IIT-M HTIC—reducing setup cost by 87% 7.Revenue Streams: Product commercialization, IP licensing
Awards
*Govt. Grants:* DBT BIRAC, KITS-Elevate, DST NIDHI PRAYAS. ~ $75000 - *Angel Investment:* Anant Despande, Persistent Systems CEO. - *Int'l Recognition:* -Winner “MSF Top Medical Innovation” -LiftWOMEN Double Winner ("Tech for Good," "Best Project") -Indo-Canada Together 2024 Runner-up. - *National Accolades:* -BRIC-DBT Top 5 Scientist-Entrepreneur -Winner National Biotech-hackathon 2024 -Winner “NBRCOM & AIIMS Best Young Researcher” 2024 -Jubilant Foundation IMPACT Innovator -Winner Entrepreneurship Conclave 3.0 2025 -Winner NER Tech Hackathon 2025
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