Aegean youth developed a lung cancer early diagnosis kit.

Ege University returned with awards from TEKNOFEST Mediterranean, where aviation, space and technology enthusiasts from Turkey and around the world gathered. In the TEKNOFEST 2024 Technology Competition for Humanity, the EGESAM-BİYOİZLEM Team of Ege University won the first prize in the “Health and First Aid” category with their project titled “Development of polymer-based 96-well thin film micro-extraction kits for the determination of cancer biomarker profiles for early diagnosis of lung cancer.”

In the TEKNOFEST 2024 Technology Competition for Humanity, carried out with the vision of a fully independent Turkey, the EGESAM-BİYOİZLEM Team of Ege University received the first prize in the “Health and First Aid” category with their project developed through innovative methods titled “Development of polymer-based 96-well thin film micro-extraction kits for the determination of cancer biomarker profiles.” The award was presented to the EGESAM-BİYOİZLEM Team by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.

Ege University Rector Prof. Dr. Necdet Budak hosted the EGESAM-BİYOİZLEM Team in his office and congratulated them. Rector Prof. Dr. Budak stated, “The goal of a fully independent Turkey, along with the vision of the National Technology Move, has once again blown the winds of our fully accredited university at TEKNOFEST Adana, which brings millions together. Your team, EGESAM-BİYOİZLEM, won the first prize in the Technology Competition for Humanity. With their project developed through innovative methods, our team made a qualified contribution to our country’s National Technology Move vision, and this award makes us proud. Undoubtedly, these awards will inspire our youth, encourage and motivate our young inventors. I believe our young researchers will make significant contributions to our country’s development process with their scientific studies. I congratulate the EGESAM-BİYOİZLEM Team for their significant achievements,” he said.

“Domestic and national diagnostic kit”

Providing information about the project, Team Captain and PhD student in the Department of Analytical Chemistry at the Faculty of Science, Ege University, İlknur Erbaş, said, “Lung cancer is the most common cause of death worldwide and in our country, and despite significant advancements in treatment, survival rates are quite low. The techniques used for early cancer detection involve tissue sampling or exposure to radioactive substances, which have many harmful effects on human health. There is a need for more effective diagnostic methods to provide early diagnosis for cancer patients. In this study, an easy, cheap, and practical sampling method has been developed for early diagnosis of lung cancer. With our test kit applied to the saliva samples of patients, metabolic studies can be conducted on 96 people simultaneously in just 2 hours, allowing for early cancer diagnosis by monitoring biomarkers. Our lung cancer early diagnosis kit, which is a patented product, is entirely a domestic and national product. In this study, metabolic pathway analyses were also conducted. As a result of these analyses, it was found that 3 different pathways are significant. With this study, appropriate treatment approaches can be applied according to the tumor pathway formed in each patient. This system is a product that can be used not only for lung cancer but also for the investigation of biomarkers of all other diseases,” she said.

EGESAM-BİYOİZLEM Team

The EGESAM-BİYOİZLEM Team is involved in the development and implementation of personalized diagnostic kits, particularly for lung cancer and other airway diseases, under the Ege University Respiratory Research Center (EGESAM). EGESAM aims to transform laboratory research in basic sciences into clinical applications for the benefit of patients for diagnostic and therapeutic purposes. The EGESAM-BİYOİZLEM Team conducts translational studies in the field of bioanalytical chemistry within this group.

The team is advised by Assoc. Prof. Dr. Füsun Pelit, a faculty member of the Department of Analytical Chemistry at the Faculty of Science at Ege University, and includes PhD students İlknur Erbaş, Tuğberk Nail Dizdaş, and Ebru Çalkan Yıldırım from the Department of Analytical Chemistry.