NEWS

The Breast Cancer Research Foundation of Alabama (BCRFA) has awarded CerFlux $100,000 Innovation award to fast-track research and development of the CerFlux Personalized Oncology Efficacy Test (POET)

Last year, as word of the COVID-19 pandemic started to spread across the United States, Dr. Karim Budhwani realized that the country was not prepared to face this crisis. He joined forces with others to put out briefs identifying critical areas of shortages, helped design, produce, and test the inexpensive PABR (Pierce-Arora-Budhwani Respirator), and teamed up with Dr. Craig Wilson to design inexpensive desk partitions for Birmingham areas schools using PVC pipes and shower curtains.

The capital raise, which includes funds from many local investors, will be used to support the company’s research and development on its upcoming test called the Personalized Oncology Efficacy Test, or POET. Company leaders hope the capital can help bring the product to the public faster.

Birmingham has been a health care town for a long time with a tremendous concentration of emerging leaders who are poised to shape the health care, technology and innovation sectors for years to come. We are recognizing those emerging leaders such as Dr. Rachael Guenter in this special NextGenBHM feature.

While this is a very difficult time for our physical, mental, and financial health; it is also a critical time for us to set differences aside and come together to fight this pandemic. It is in this spirit that we are writing to you today to suggest an approach which costs a fraction of the proposed $3 trillion package, is sustainable over twelve months, and provides a more robust path to economic recovery while simultaneously safeguarding those most susceptible to COVID-19 and shielding health systems from becoming overwhelmed.

CerFlux, a local startup focused on cancer, has been selected for the NIH I-Corps Accelerator to fast track the commercialization of the company’s personalized medicine test also known as the Personalized Oncology Efficacy Test (POET). The company has also received a $50,000 grant from the NIH.

The Breast Cancer Research Foundation of Alabama has selected the projects that will earn part of $1.05 million delegated to Alabama-based breast cancer research. “Despite Covid-19, individuals and companies throughout the state stepped up for breast cancer research,” said Beth Bradner Davis, executive director of the BCRFA.

CerFlux’s imaging technology is used to provide efficiency that is critical for processing breast cancer tumor specimens through a Personalized Oncology Efficacy test, or POET. The personalized medicine approach at the heart of POET, according to CerFlux, will address the critical, urgent and unmet need for accessible and affordable predictive tools that identify the optimal systemic therapy regimens and eliminate ineffective options for treatment.

The 2020 BIO Alabama Conference wrapped up its final day with panels and keynote speakers including biotech innovation, incubators, and accelerators. In total, the conference delivered over 70 presenters in over 30 sessions. Dr. Karim Budhwani, CEO of advanced personalization medicine technology company CerFlux Inc., gave an insightful talk on innovation and new knowledge, the basis of innovation.

Dr. Karim Budhwani and Dr. Craig Wilson are putting their considerable talents to work designing something that might make returning to school this fall safer. Learn more about the simple desk partition that has the potential to make safe and healthy learning in schools—in Birmingham and elsewhere—much easier all around. Keep reading for all the details.

The pandemic has spared few sectors, and Birmingham’s startup scene is no different, with Covid-19 causing a mix of challenges and opportunities. Dr. Karim Budhwani, CEO of the biotech startup CerFlux, encountered a lack of basic laboratory supplies due to supply chain issues. “I think we will all agree that we anticipated this to be a challenge, and we were able to respond rather than react,” he said. “And I believe that has helped us all actually come out ahead."

Vulcan Servant Leader Award presented in recognition of selfless service to others. This award recognizes those who, like Vulcan, has stood for the community by serving others. CerFlux CEO, Dr. Karim Budhwani, receives the Servant Leader Spear Award at the annual Vulcans Community Awards for his work in scientific research and developing strategies to help combat the spread of COVID-19.

In a year like this, heroes rise to the occasion. Since the Covid-19 crisis emerged in March, we’ve seen it time and again across a variety of industries. But, in this challenging year, the heroes in our health care world deserve special recognition. Cancer – the emperor of all maladies – kills nearly 10 million people every year; one death every three seconds. At CerFlux, we are developing nanomedicine biotechnology to change the paradigm from “dying of cancer” to “living with cancer”

A cancer-specific personalized medicine startup in Birmingham has received a R43 grant from the National Cancer Institute. CerFlux received $249,148 to help fund the continuing development of its low-cost, rapid personalized oncology efficacy test, dubbed POET, for Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC).

As Alabama schools prepared to reopen during rising COVID-19 case counts, Dr. Karim Budhwani outlines practical steps to reduce transmission risk while keeping in-person learning possible. He stresses planning for multiple spread routes (surfaces, droplets, and airborne aerosols) and recommends layering protections such as consistent masking, reducing “the three C’s” (closed spaces, crowded places, close contact), strong hygiene, cleaning, and improved ventilation/filtration. The piece also encourages symptom monitoring and community-aware vigilance as conditions evolve.