Newswise — SAN FRANCISCO, Oct. 17, 2024 Teal Health, a woman-led company on a mission to get all women and people with a cervix in the US screened for cervical cancer, has been awarded a $1.68 million Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Direct to Phase II Grant from the National Cancer Institute (NCI) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The prestigious grant was awarded to support the development and clinical validation of Teal Health's Teal Wand™, a purpose-built device that allows a woman to collect her own vaginal sample for human papillomavirus (HPV) testing, a critical piece in cervical cancer prevention - all from the comfort, convenience, and privacy of her home.
Teal Health is Awarded $1.68 Million SBIR Grant from National Cancer Institute for At-Home Cervical Cancer Screening
The grant follows a highly competitive review process, with only a limited number of applicants selected for funding in this review period. The NIH committee recognized the importance of the Teal Wand, coupled with the telehealth technology platform, to increase access to cervical cancer screening and adherence to follow-up steps. Teal Health was chosen for its potential to address a significant need in women's health: increasing access to life-saving cervical cancer screening, of which 1 in 3 women are not up-to-date. "We're honored that the NIH recognizes the importance of our at-home screening technology in increasing access to preventive care and cancer screenings for women in the US," said Kara Egan, CEO and co-founder of Teal Health. "This funding brings us closer to our goal of providing women greater autonomy over their health while advancing the fight to eradicate cervical cancer."
The SBIR funds will support the clinical development of the Teal Wand, for which a nationwide clinical trial was launched in early 2024. Clinical validation is essential to providing women with a trusted and accurate alternative to in-office testing, and it is equally important that the women who use it feel confident and comfortable, and find it easy to use. By combining technical precision with a user-centered design, Teal Health is working to ensure that the solution meets the real-world needs of women.
Teal Health has partnered with leading institutions and experts, including Dr. Akiva Novetsky, Associate Chair for Quality and Safety at New York Medical College and Associate Professor of Gynecologic Oncology at Westchester Medical Center. "As we work towards the elimination of cervical cancer in the US, this grant will help provide safety and efficacy data for at-home self-collection, an option that has the potential to further expand access to cervical screening," said Dr. Akiva Novetsky. "This level of clinical rigor is essential to ensure that this screening method has similar efficacy to clinician-collected screening. We are hopeful that self-screening will help in closing the screening gap while maintaining the highest standards of care."
Teal Health's mission is clear: to redefine cervical cancer screening by designing a device that is as accessible as it is effective. Between the nationwide clinical trial receiving the FDA's Breakthrough Device Designation and this grant, Teal Health is making significant progress toward turning that vision into reality.
About Teal Health
Teal Health is on a mission to design a better healthcare experience for women - starting with cervical cancer screenings. By creating the option for a woman to collect her own screening sample from the comfort of her home or health clinic and providing telehealth follow-up, Teal can increase access to this critical screening. Teal Health is a member of the Cervical Cancer Roundtable, a joint collaboration between the American Cancer Society and the Biden Cancer Moonshot, a coalition of industry leaders with the goal of eliminating cervical cancer as a public health concern in the US. To learn more, visit www.getteal.com.
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