“There is certainly not enough funding for ovarian cancer, and also not enough for detection and prevention of cancer in general,” says Daniel Heller. “There have been foundations that help to fill the gap, but generally not enough resources for prevention and early detection research.”
Why It’s Hard To Detect Ovarian Cancer, According To Researchers
Why Detecting Ovarian Cancer Is So Challenging — And How New Science Is Changing the Story
A recent Women’s Health feature asked a critical question: Why is it still so hard to detect ovarian cancer early? Despite being less common than breast cancer, ovarian cancer remains among the top five causes of cancer death for women, with a five-year survival rate of just 51%.
The reasons are sobering. Ovarian cancer often begins in the fallopian tubes, is difficult to detect with current tools, and produces vague symptoms easily mistaken for digestive or gynecological issues. Unlike breast cancer, there is no routine screening test for asymptomatic women. As a result, nearly 80% of cases are first diagnosed at advanced stages — when treatments are less effective.
The Funding and Research Gap
Experts, including Nine Diagnostics co-founder Dr. Daniel Heller of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, emphasize that ovarian cancer remains underfunded relative to its lethality. Gynecologic cancers receive some of the lowest funding-to-mortality ratios across all cancers, slowing the pace of progress in early detection and prevention research.
A New Direction: Nanosensors + AI
Dr. Heller’s lab is working on an innovative solution: carbon nanotube nanosensors combined with AI pattern recognition. These nanosensors are engineered to emit subtle fluorescent signals when exposed to molecules in the blood. AI then decodes these signals, identifying “molecular fingerprints” that differentiate blood from women with ovarian cancer versus those without it.
In early studies, this approach has already outperformed CA-125, the long-standing but unreliable biomarker used today. The team is also exploring whether the same platform could one day detect precancerous lesions in the fallopian tubes — a potential breakthrough in shifting detection years earlier.
What This Means for Nine Diagnostics
At Nine Diagnostics, we are building on these same scientific foundations. Our mission is to make biology measurable by harnessing nanosensors and AI to unlock hidden biological signals and deliver actionable insights. Dr. Heller’s leadership in this space underscores both the urgency and the promise of bringing next-generation diagnostics into clinical practice.
Looking Ahead
While universal screening for ovarian cancer is still years away, the trajectory is clear: nanosensor-based diagnostics paired with AI could deliver earlier, more accurate, and less invasive detection. For patients and clinicians, this would mean faster answers, better outcomes, and fewer lives lost to late-stage diagnoses.
At Nine Diagnostics, we remain committed to translating this technology from the lab to the clinic — and to reshaping the future of cancer detection.