Tears of hope: How Namida Lab is transforming breast cancer diagnosis
Namida Lab, founded by Omid Moghadam, is a biotechnology start-up that specializes in developing early cancer detection tests using proteomics. The inspiration behind Namida Lab’s groundbreaking work stems from a personal and professional commitment to improving health outcomes. Dr. Suzanne Klimberg, Chief of Surgical Oncology at the University of Texas Medical Branch, observed that many of her rural patients were diagnosed with late-stage breast cancer due to lack of accessible screening. This led to the development of a simple, deployable lab test using tears as a non-invasive biological fluid for screening.
Innovative approach to breast cancer detection
Namida Lab’s flagship product, Auria, is the first at-home biological breast cancer screening test powered by tears. Auria will improve the health outcomes for women through convenient early breast cancer detection and presents the opportunity to disrupt the breast cancer screening market that is clinically confusing and has lacked innovation.
Omid comments: I lost my mom to cancer and am a cancer survivor. Namida’s vision of fighting cancer through early detection is more than a business, it is a mission to improve health outcomes for all women, including my two sisters and two daughters.
By analyzing protein biomarkers involved in the early inflammatory process due to abnormalities in breast tissue, Auria can produce a clinically relevant result and classification. This result is generated through the quantification of specific proteins found in tears, processed by a proprietary algorithm. This innovative approach not only provides a non-invasive and cost-effective screening option but also addresses the need for early detection in breast cancer, potentially improving health outcomes significantly. Namida Lab’s dedication to innovation has garnered significant recognition. In April 2023, Auria won the prestigious Gold prize for Intelligent Diagnostics at the 36th annual Edison Awards. Additionally, Namida Lab was named a Fierce15 company by Fierce Bio in 2024. These accolades highlight the impact and potential of Namida’s technology in transforming breast cancer screening.
Simplifying cancer screening
The challenge of early cancer detection lies in the complexity and heterogeneity of the disease. Traditional methods such as imaging tests and invasive biopsies are not only expensive and uncomfortable for patients but also sometimes inaccurate due to tumor heterogeneity. Namida Lab addresses these issues by developing accessible early cancer detection tests that can be performed easily at home, thus reducing the barriers to regular screening and enabling timely diagnosis and treatment.
About Omid Moghadam
Omid Moghadam is the Founder and CEO of Namida Lab. He is an inventor, entrepreneur, venture investor, and educator. He specializes in launching new ventures with social impact in health and technology. Moghadam has inventions in medical imaging, cryptography, microprocessor design, medical devices, diagnostics, digital photography, data science, and communications. He is currently the Chairman of RAPID Dosimetry, a precision medicine company he also co-founded and a board member of The Diary Corporation. He is the past founder or co-founder of nine companies in Healthcare IT, genomics, diagnostics, and medical imaging, and has held executive positions at Intel, Eastman Kodak, and CTG-AMS Corporations.
He formerly served on the advisory boards of Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Children's Hospital Boston, and California Healthcare Foundation, and has held academic positions at Harvard Medical School Department of Biomedical Informatics, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Lally School of Business as well as an EIR position at UCLA. Mr. Moghadam’s past approaches to innovation have been highlighted in two books: Grabbing Lightning, and The Innovators Prescription. Omid loves art, history, languages, and travel. Most Sundays he can be found sweating over FT’s Polymath crossword puzzle.
In conversation with Founder Omid Moghadam:
Innovative horizons
The methods for detecting breast cancer have not developed much during the last century. The most common way of screening for breast cancer is mammography and was performed for the first time in 1913. Since the 1980s, mammography has been applied as a one size fits all for screening of women for breast cancer. To introduce new innovations in this space, large scale studies are needed. The Wisdom Study, out of University of California in San Francisco is a very large-scale ten-year study that is in its sixth year. Once the study is completed, we will have another data set that will help introduce new innovations such as genetic and proteomic lab tests into the breast cancer screening process.
Advice for aspiring innovators
Think of healthcare as a consumer product. Craft your new healthcare inventions to be both advanced and simple. For decades, healthcare innovations have been trending to be more expensive, and more complex. This limits the adoption and use of these new lifesaving technologies. Advanced simplicity in design will open doors for wider adoption.
The role of Tech4Eva
Being part of the 2024 Tech4Eva accelerator cohort allows us to be apart of the global Femtech innovation community and connect with fellowinnovators, entrepreneurs, and investors. Thanks to the Tech4Eva acceleratorprogram, we will raise awareness for advances in breast cancer screening withconvenient and accessible breast cancer screening lab tests. Our goal is toincrease early-stage breast cancer detection, reduce cancer spend, and improvebreast health outcomes for all women.
In conclusion, Namida Lab is not just a company but amission-driven initiative dedicated to improving women’s health throughinnovative and accessible cancer detection methods. With continued advancementsand support from programs like Tech4Eva, Namida Lab is well on its way tomaking a significant impact in the fight against breast cancer.
Company Website & Social Handles
Instagram : @namidalab
Facebook : @namidalabs
X : @Namidalab
LinkedIn : @Namida Lab, Inc.
Product Website & Social Handles
IG @auria.care
Facebook : @auria.careq
X : @auriacare
LinkedIn : @auria – biological breast cancer screening