UG students nominated for Young Business Award 2017

Nutte van Belzen (basic medical practitioner), Jean-Luc Kraaijenoord (law student) and Wisse Krikke (business studies student) have been nominated for the Young Business Award 2017 with their company CC Diagnostics.

The current screening process results in over 5000 women a year in the Netherlands alone getting a false positive for the possibility of cervical cancer. This group then has to undergo an invasive examination by a gynaecologist. Applying the new test in the workflow of American and European countries would reduce the chances of a false positive result and lower the percentage of missed cancers.

The UMCG has been conducting research for the past 14 years on a new way to screen for cervical cancer. CC Diagnostics is marketing the DNA-based hypermethylation PCR test, comprising a combination of eight different genes. The best results are achieved when the CC Diagnostics test is combined with the well-known HR-HPV test: the percentage of missed cancers can drop from 24% to 3%. The new test can also prevent women having to undergo an unnecessary colposcopy. Annual expenditure in the Netherlands could be reduced by € 2.9 million.

Van Belzen, Kraaijenoord and Krikke started exploring the market in 2016. If CC Diagnostics wins the Young Business Award, the start-up company will receive € 12,500 to develop further. CC Diagnostics is one of 12 companies nominated for the prize. A jury will choose four companies that will pitch their business model during the final on 6 June. The public can vote for a fifth finalist.