FFUND proudly assisted The Blue Box Biomedical Solutions, S.L. and Devlabs ApS in getting awarded the Eurostars grant (total value €733.4K) for their innovative approach to developing a breakthrough breast cancer (BC) screening device.
About the TBB-Sx consortium
The TBB-Sx consortium brings together complementary expertise in biomedical engineering, chemical sensor technology and artificial intelligence. The project is led by The Blue Box Biomedical Solutions (Spain), an innovative SME specialising in AI-driven, urine-based cancer detection. Building on years of translational research and multi-centre clinical pilots, The Blue Box has developed a platform capable of detecting breast cancer–associated volatile organic compound (VOC) patterns in urine. Performance of the platform already exceeds that of mammography in several key metrics. DevLabs ApS (Denmark) contributes deep expertise in advanced gas sensor design and temperature-cycled sensor arrays. Together, these partners ensure robust scientific leadership, seamless coordination, and the successful development of a more effective large-scale medical screening BC device with transformative clinical impact.
What is the TBB-Sx about?
The project addresses a major challenge in women’s health by overcoming the limitations of mammography in detecting breast cancer, the most diagnosed cancer in women worldwide. While mammography is the current gold standard for screening, it misses up to 30–40% of cases overall and performs particularly poorly in women with dense breast tissue, around half of the female population. This leads to delayed diagnoses, unnecessary recalls, patient anxiety, and avoidable healthcare costs.
TBB-Sx will deliver a portable, non-invasive, radiation-free screening solution capable of detecting BC rapidly and accurately at the point of care. TBB-Sx high-throughput urine-based BC screening device combines:
- A compact analyzerthat heats urine samples to release cancer-associated VOC biomarkers, captured using an advanced sensor array.
- An AI-driven software platformthat analyses complex VOC patterns and delivers a rapid binary result (presence/absence of BC) within 30 minutes.
The system is designed for high throughput and easy integration into existing clinical workflows, enabling scalable deployment in hospitals, women’s clinics, and screening programs.
By offering higher sensitivity at a significantly lower cost than mammography or liquid biopsy approaches, TBB-Sx has the potential to reduce missed cancers, avoid millions of unnecessary recalls, and make high-quality BC screening more accessible worldwide, including in low-resource settings.
How did FFUND help?
FFUND provided comprehensive guidance and consortium management throughout the application process. Even after the successful evaluation, FFUND continued to support the consortium to ensure the release of national funding.
Claudia Milazzo (Project Lead): “Working with the TBB-Sx consortium on this Eurostars proposal was an inspiring and rewarding experience. I especially valued the constructive exchanges within the team, which made working together enjoyable. As a woman, knowing how relevant this project is for women’s health gives the collaboration an added sense of purpose, and I am truly excited about the impact TBB-Sx could have on breast cancer detection and on women’s lives more broadly.”
Filipa Carvalhal Marques (Strategy Expert): “Working with The Blue Box and DevLabs has been a great experience. From a technology that resonates with me as a woman, to the positive energy and smiling faces. Even on days that are more challenging, I’ve seen a lot of persistence, commitment and genuine friendliness. To me, this feels like an excellent collaboration, and one I am confident will be very fruitful.”
CEO The Blue Box Biomedical Solutions
The Blue Box co-founder & CEO, Judit Giró Benet: “Working with FFund turned what is usually a complex and chaotic multi-partner consortium application into a smooth and well-structured process. They quickly understood the project and handled all the logistics, allowing us to focus on the actual project design. We will definitely work with them again in the future.”
CCO DevLabs
DevLabs co-founder & COO, Gintaras Simaitis: “FFUND’s expertise was instrumental in navigating the complexities of the Eurostars application. Their team provided the structure and strategic oversight necessary to bring our consortium together, allowing Devlabs to focus on our technical role while they ensured a high-quality, winning submission.”
About Eurostars
Eurostars is a funding program initiated by Eureka. It supports innovative small and medium-sized enterprises in collaborative research and development projects across Europe.
How FFUND can help
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