Center for Innovation and Translation of Point-of-Care Cancer Tests to Expand Access
Official title: The Center for Innovation and Translation of Point of Care Technologies for Expanded Cancer Care Access (CITEC)
Funded at Rice University · NIH-11398572 · Data updated 2026-11-12
A U54 grant at Rice University is building and testing affordable point-of-care cancer tests to help people in diverse settings get earlier cancer detection and better access to care.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Rice University NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Houston, United States) |
| Project start | September 13, 2023 |
| Project end | July 31, 2028 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $1,261,456 |
| NIH project number | 5U54EB034652-04 |
| Project ID | NIH-11398572 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates include individuals in regions with limited cancer screening resources, and patients at higher risk for epithelial-surface cancers who could benefit from early detection tools.
✕Less likely to help
People without access barriers to standard care or those unlikely to benefit from early detection technologies may not experience direct benefit.
What this research studies
This center aims to identify urgent clinical needs for simple cancer tests that can be used at primary care or rural clinics. It will accelerate the development of affordable point‑of‑care technologies, rigorously evaluate their real‑world impact, and train developers and users to deploy scalable solutions. The work focuses on cancers that arise on epithelial surfaces and seeks to improve early detection and health outcomes for patients who may have limited resources.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, patients could receive earlier cancer detection and timely treatment through easy-to-use tests in primary care or remote settings.
How similar studies have gone: Previous point‑of‑care cancer tests have shown promise, and this program builds on that by targeting affordability and broad deployment.
Where this research is happening
-
Rice University
Houston, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Richards-Kortum, Rebecca R. — Rice University
- Study coordinator: Richards-Kortum, Rebecca R.
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.