Small but mighty cancer diagnosis device a winner

Time really is of the essence when you only have three minutes to showcase a scientific initiative that could save lives and change the world. University of Otago biochemistry post-doctoral fellow Dr Judy Ann Cocadiz said squeezing in all the information that New Zealand’s top scientists needed to know about her innovative and potentially life-saving cancer detecting device was a tall order. But she did it at the Royal Society Te Apārangi 2026 Falling Walls Lab Aotearoa New Zealand competition in Wellington recently. And now she will represent New Zealand at the global final in Berlin in November. [Missing Credit]University of Otago biochemistry post-doctoral fellow Dr Judy Ann Cocadiz in her lab. Photo: Supplied During the 180-second pitch, she described her ground-breaking project, which aimed to create a circulating tumour DNA (ctDNA) device that could collect small fragments of genetic material shed by cancer cells into the bloodstream. She said the device — about the size of a grain of rice — would be designed to be temporarily inserted into a blood vessel for about 30 minutes, allowing it to directly collect ctDNA. “It’ll be a bit like a fishing net. The device’s surface will be treated to improve its ability to capture ctDNA more effectively. “We’d put it through a syringe and it will just sit there, and then it will passively sample your blood for the circulating tumour DNA.” The device would then be retrieved and the captured ctDNA would be analysed, she said. “Since ctDNA is coming from the cancer cell itself, it’s got all the mutations, all the characteristics.” It was hoped the proposed device would be able to help doctors diagnose what type of cancer a patient had and where it was growing, early enough to remove and potentially cure it, she said. She was surprised to win the national final, and was very excited about presenting her initiative at the world final in Germany. “I was the last one to present, so I was just listening to everyone else present all these amazing ideas and I didn’t think I would win, so it still feels a bit surreal that I actually won.” The rewards for just competing at the world final would be very tangible, Dr Cocadiz said. There would be a lot of different biomedical companies and funding bodies there, listening and looking for innovative research to invest in. “There will also be Nobel laureates there, so even if I don’t meet people who can fund me, I can meet people who can actually make our research better or give us some more ideas. “I think that’s already quite amazing in itself. “And also, just getting this idea out there also gives people a little hope for the future.” john.lewis@odt.co.nz

Small but mighty cancer diagnosis device a winner

Praying for return of religious works

SH99 closing again for serious crash investigation

Snow buffs hoping to hit slopes and rinks

'Sam effect': Donations for anti-mine group boosted

Protest outside Parliament against plan to bulldoze Canterbury golf course