The National Cancer Institute, a component of the National Institutes of Health, recently awarded a $2.8 million Small Business Innovative Research grant to TechniScan Medical Systems.

The funding will be used to support development and preclinical testing of the company's UltraSound CT technology. Phase I, involving the design of technical improvements to the system, is under way and expected to be complete by early 2007.

The grant will be distributed in two phases. Phase II will involve production of two copies of the improved UltraSound CT imaging system for preclinical testing at the University of California San Diego and at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota.

TechniScan is a private company that grew out of the University of Utah's Department of Bioengineering. The state Centers of Excellence program has provided support for commercializing the technology.

The new imaging system is intended to help doctors in diagnosing breast cancer in conjunction with traditional mammography by providing detailed information about the anatomy and tissue properties of the breast in ways not previously possible.