ARTANN LABS, PROUROCARE TO BENEFIT FROM $3 MILLION DEVELOPMENT GRANT

The National Cancer Institute has awarded a three-year Small Business Innovation Research Phase II Competitive Renewal grant of up to $3 million to Artann Laboratories, according to the firm's development partner, vision and sensing technology firm ProUroCare Medical.

The grant will be used to help develop the ProUroScan, a mechanical prostate imaging system to diagnose and screen for prostate cancer, ProUroCare said Oct. 5.

The ProUroScan is designed as a "portable cost-effective device that mimics a digital rectal examination of the prostate," the firm said. Electronically stored images can also be used to monitor changes in the prostate over time, the firm said.