United by Innovation: Advancing Cancer Care Through Technology

India sees 1.3 million new cancer cases each year, and about 87% of cancer cases are diagnosed at advanced stages, making timely intervention challenging. Access to specialised care is another major challenge—there is only one medical oncologist available per million people, and while 70% of patients are in rural areas, 95% of cancer centres are concentrated in cities. The burden of late-stage detection disproportionately affects underserved communities, where accessibility and affordability remain critical barriers. While efforts to improve screening, prevention, and treatment are ongoing, significant gaps persist in timely diagnosis, quality care, and survivorship support.?

By focusing on affordability, precision, and accessibility, HealthTech innovations can drive meaningful change across the cancer care continuum. At Social Alpha, we have supported oncology start-ups through both Social Alpha accelerator programs and investment, including initiatives like the 辉瑞 INDovation program, to address critical challenges in cancer care. This World Cancer Day, we reflect on the urgent need for equitable access to screening, diagnosis, and treatment, recognising the systemic barriers that delay care and impact outcomes.??

A New Era of Early Detection and Screening?

The earlier cancer is detected, the greater the chances of successful treatment. Yet, for millions, access to early screening remains out of reach. CERVICHECK by Pragmatech Healthcare Solutions Pvt. Ltd. , bioLOCKEY Healthworks , and Brela Innovations Private Limited are working to change this by developing solutions that prioritise accessibility, accuracy, and ease of use.?

Shreya Manoj Nair , co-founder of Brela, was deeply moved by the lack of awareness surrounding breast cancer screenings. “Almost all women at OPDs and pre-treatment were at the last stage, when it's often too late to turn back. It struck a chord with me because my own grandmother had to undergo a double mastectomy for breast cancer treatment, which also put me at a probable risk.” Brela’s Naibra is a smart breast pad that provides real-time alerts on abnormalities, making at-home breast health monitoring simple and stigma-free.?

Anirban Palit , founder of Pragmatech, recognised that cervical cancer mortality in India is disproportionately high compared to countries like the U.S. Pragmatech’s CerviCheck Self-Sampling Kit enables women to collect cervical cells from the privacy of their homes with 100% accuracy for HPV screening. "In a rural location, instead of going to crowded VIA-based mass screening camps and losing a day's earnings, rural ladies are encouraged by ASHA Workers to get themselves checked using the CerviCheck kit,” he explains.?

Biolockey’s innovation addresses a similar gap in cervical cancer screening through its point-of-care, multi-marker diagnostic test for HPV detection. "The WHO mandates a molecular test to detect high-risk HPV infections, but existing RT-PCR methods fall short in terms of cost, speed, and accessibility,” explains Anchal Chandra , co-founder of Biolockey. Their innovation, selfCERVIX, is a self-use, diagnostic test that delivers rapid results within 5–10 minutes, making cancer detection more accessible and reduces detection downtime to facilitate mass screening.?

Precision in Diagnosis and Treatment?

Early-stage detection is only one part of the equation—ensuring accuracy in diagnosis and effectiveness in treatment is equally critical. RNT Health Insights , BrainSightAI , and TeraLumen Solutions are pioneering AI-driven imaging solutions that transform cancer care.?

Endoscopic procedures—the gold standard for diagnosing gastrointestinal cancers—face significant challenges. Vast inspection areas, inherent blind spots, and subjective lesion detection can result in missing up to 25.8% of gastric cancer cases, contributing to roughly 1.1 million preventable deaths annually. RNT Health Insights has addressed this critical gap with their AI assisted detection Software as a Medical Device (SaMD) solution that aids endoscopists in the real-time detection of lesions, including early gastric cancer and associated malignant lesions. Tanmaya Gulati , co-founder of RNT Health, explains the motivation behind their innovation. “Our decision to focus on cancer care, specifically gastrointestinal cancers, came from a realisation of their poor prognosis and high mortality rates due to the lack of early detection. We realised that improving detection rates for early-stage cancerous lesions could significantly increase the 5-year survival rates from 20% to 90%.” With a preclinical accuracy of 96%, this tool alerts physicians in real time by highlighting lesions on the monitor, enabling timely intervention and ultimately aiming to improve survival rates.? ?

Similarly, neurosurgical precision is critical when treating brain tumours. BrainSightAI’s VoxelBox, an AI-driven neuroimaging solution, enhances neurosurgical planning by mapping neural connections and determining the safest surgical paths. It allows surgeons to visualise intricate brain networks and navigate with greater accuracy. This is particularly crucial for surgeries near functional areas like motor, language, or sensory regions, where even minor errors can have lasting consequences. By integrating AI-powered neuroimaging, BrainSightAI is improving surgical outcomes and minimising collateral damage to healthy brain tissue.?

Cancer margin assessment is another critical step in cancer surgery, particularly in procedures aimed at removing tumours. Accurate assessment of surgical margins around a tumour removed during surgery is crucial to ensure that all cancerous tissue is excised, minimising recurrence risk. Today, surgeons rely on frozen section analysis or post-operative pathology to assess tumour margins, but these methods can be time-consuming, subjective, and sometimes miss microscopic cancer cells. As a result, up to 20-30% of patients require repeat surgeries due to incomplete tumour removal.?

TeraLumen has developed TeraMargin, a non-invasive device based on terahertz technology for cancer margin assessment during surgeries, offering a quicker, more accurate alternative by analysing tissue in real-time and providing detailed heatmaps that differentiate malignant from benign tissue. "Innovation in cancer care is not easy: there are scientific, regulatory, and operational challenges at every step. Knowing that our Terahertz imaging technology can empower surgeons with real-time, precise margin detection, and potentially reduce the need for reoperations, drives me forward. We are not just developing a device; we are building a future where cancer surgeries are more precise, less invasive, and have better outcomes.” says Dr. Jyotirmayee Dash , founder of TeraLumen.?

With advancements in treatment, more cancer patients are surviving longer, but their post-treatment quality of life remains a critical concern. Dr. Pawan Mehrotra, founder of Aarna Biomedical, was inspired to develop the Poorti Kit after witnessing the emotional toll of mastectomy patients. "In the oncology OPD, I observed women wearing sarees with their pallu on one side to hide their scars. One woman’s husband told me that she was far more disturbed by the permanent void in her body than the treatment itself.” Aarna Biomedicals has developed ‘Poorti’ a cost-effective silicone gel prosthesis for breast cancer survivors, restoring dignity and confidence.??

Expanding the Reach of Cancer Care?

While entrepreneurs and innovators are developing transformative solutions for various stages and types of cancer, ensuring these advancements translate into widespread impact requires a systemic approach. The challenge is not just about creating new technologies but also about identifying and scaling the right innovations that can seamlessly integrate into existing healthcare frameworks. To ensure equitable access to cancer care, it is crucial to decentralise screening, diagnosis, and treatment to district hospitals and primary health centres (PHCs).?

Manoj Kumar , founder of Social Alpha, highlights the importance of decentralisation: "Preventive and diagnostic screening for common cancers like breast, cervical, and oral must move closer to the community level. Point-of-care diagnostic tools, AI-driven image analysis, and task-shifting to non-specialist health workers will be key to achieving this.”?

Neeraj Jain , Country Director at PATH , expands on this idea: “There have been significant investments in establishing apex cancer research institutes in the last few decades which seek to provide quality cancer care services. However, true accessibility requires decentralisation. Population risk stratification, along with services like prevention, screening, and early-stage cancer management, must be embedded into primary care systems. AI-driven histopathology, automated training tools, and portable diagnostic solutions will play a crucial role in overcoming infrastructure constraints, reducing specialist workload, and enabling frontline healthcare workers to deliver essential cancer care services more effectively.”?

Cancer care is not just about treating a disease—it’s about creating a system where early detection, precise diagnosis, and effective treatment become universally accessible. The start-ups we work with embody this vision, bringing together unique, tech-driven approaches to make cancer care more inclusive and effective.?

On this World Cancer Day, we reaffirm our commitment to enabling solutions that go beyond innovation—they create impact. We need to push the boundaries of what’s possible, ensuring that every patient, no matter where they live, has access to the right care at the right time. The future of cancer care is not just in new technologies but in the collective effort to make them reach the people who need them the most.??

Written by Aakriti Sinha and Dr Mrigank Warrier , Social Alpha

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