We are a liquid biopsy company focused on cancer screening with a proprietary technology for detecting precancer and cancer cells in a single blood sample. We have built a team of experts across multiple disciplines, including precancer and cancer cell capture and imaging, algorithm development, biostatistics, and development and commercialization of clinical grade tests.
Professor with the Department of Population Health at NYU Grossman School of Medicine
Professor of Medicine at the University of Texas McGovern Medical School
Atul Sharan co-founded CellMax Life in 2012, applying semiconductor industry principles to a proprietary Circulating Epithelial Cell Bio-Mimetic CMx platform to develop affordable and quantitative blood-tests for Early Cancer Detection and Treatment. He was motivated to start CellMax as two members of his family had been diagnosed with cancer – one of them was diagnosed with breast cancer within two weeks of receiving a conclusively negative mammogram. Atul is a veteran of the high-tech industry with experience as an engineer, serial entrepreneur, CEO and angel investor. Previously he was also resident at Mohr-Davidow Ventures and Artiman Ventures. He specializes in identifying unmet market needs and matching them with early-stage technologies to achieve dramatically better results than prevailing standards. He has done that successfully multiple times: AutoESL (acquired by Xilinx); ClearShape Technologies (acquired by Cadence), Numerical Technologies (Nasdaq IPO; acquired by Synopsys); Ambit Design (acquired by Cadence). Atul holds a BS in Engineering from IIT-India; MS in Engineering from UH, Texas and an MBA from UC-Berkeley.
As Chief Scientific Officer at CellMax Life, Dr Mei leads a global team of R&D scientists, CLIA and CAP laboratory professionals, bioinformaticians and software engineers. She is responsible for the development of CellMax Life’s multi-biomarker platforms, including the precancer and cancer cell detection, next generation sequencing (NGS), methylation and protein expression platforms. Prior to joining CellMax Life, Dr Mei was Vice President of R&D and genomic service operations, and part of the founding team at Centrillion Biosciences, where she established that company's next-generation sequencing services for pharmaceutical companies, researchers and physicians. At Affymetrix, a pioneer in multi-biomarker analysis tools, Dr Mei led the development of multiple products for genotyping, re-sequencing, and gene expression analysis. She received her PhD in Biochemistry from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, and post-doctoral training in Nucleic Acid Enzymology at Stanford University. Dr Mei has published over 40 articles in peer-reviewed scientific journals and holds 20 patents.
John Sninsky brings a comprehensive and deep understanding of the development and application of pioneering molecular procedures to the translation of research-grade biomarker assays into clinical-grade clinically adopted diagnostic tests. He has authored over 110 scientific papers including advanced methods in molecular biology, lipid sub-fractionation, application of the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) to virology and cancer, and genome-wide genetic association studies for multiple common, complex diseases. Most recently, as CSO of CareDx (Nasdaq: CDNA) John oversaw the translation of an early stage research NGS Test to a US government reimbursed and now widely adopted Laboratory Developed CLIA-CAP test for transplanted kidney rejection. Over the last year, John has consulted in Dx assay development and advised on clinical and technical dossier drafting for reimbursement in cancer, autism, and liver disease. He advises commercial translation efforts at Stanford University (SPARK) and University of California in San Francisco (CATALYST).
John holds a PhD from Purdue University and carried out postdoctoral studies at Stanford University before serving on the faculty of Albert Einstein College of Medicine.
He has over 30 years experience having served in executive positions at Cetus, Roche Molecular Systems, Hoffmann La-Roche, Celera, Quest Diagnostics and CareDx . These companies ranged from small to enterprise CLIA-CAP laboratories and small to enterprise in vitro diagnostic (IVD) companies that required FDA clearance and approval for commercialization of kits.
John’s past awards include being a recipient of the Purdue University Distinguished Alumni Award (2001), the Hoffmann-La Roche R & D Prize (1997) for his efforts in applying PCR to virology and developing assays for measuring viral load in individuals with (HIV) AIDS, the Pan American Society for Clinical Virology Award (1992) and the Centers for Disease Control Charles C. Shepherd Science Award (1988). His professional society memberships include the American Association for the Advancement of Science, Association of Molecular Pathology, American Society Human Genetics, American College Medical Genetics, American Association Cancer Research, American Society of Clinical Oncology and American Association for the Study of Liver Disease.
John Sninsky brings a comprehensive and deep understanding of the development and application of pioneering molecular procedures to the translation of research-grade biomarker assays into clinical-grade clinically adopted diagnostic tests. He has authored over 110 scientific papers including advanced methods in molecular biology, lipid sub-fractionation, application of the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) to virology and cancer, and genome-wide genetic association studies for multiple common, complex diseases. Most recently, as CSO of CareDx (Nasdaq: CDNA) John oversaw the translation of an early stage research NGS Test to a US government reimbursed and now widely adopted Laboratory Developed CLIA-CAP test for transplanted kidney rejection. Over the last year, John has consulted in Dx assay development and advised on clinical and technical dossier drafting for reimbursement in cancer, autism, and liver disease. He advises commercial translation efforts at Stanford University (SPARK) and University of California in San Francisco (CATALYST).
John holds a PhD from Purdue University and carried out postdoctoral studies at Stanford University before serving on the faculty of Albert Einstein College of Medicine.
He has over 30 years experience having served in executive positions at Cetus, Roche Molecular Systems, Hoffmann La-Roche, Celera, Quest Diagnostics and CareDx . These companies ranged from small to enterprise CLIA-CAP laboratories and small to enterprise in vitro diagnostic (IVD) companies that required FDA clearance and approval for commercialization of kits.
John’s past awards include being a recipient of the Purdue University Distinguished Alumni Award (2001), the Hoffmann-La Roche R & D Prize (1997) for his efforts in applying PCR to virology and developing assays for measuring viral load in individuals with (HIV) AIDS, the Pan American Society for Clinical Virology Award (1992) and the Centers for Disease Control Charles C. Shepherd Science Award (1988). His professional society memberships include the American Association for the Advancement of Science, Association of Molecular Pathology, American Society Human Genetics, American College Medical Genetics, American Association Cancer Research, American Society of Clinical Oncology and American Association for the Study of Liver Disease.
Dr Watson is responsible for clinical studies at CellMax Life. He is a highly accomplished senior executive with over 30 years of success in biostatistics and computational biology at Invitae, Genomic Health, Incyte Genomics, and Chiron Corporation. At Genomic Health, he led the pivotal clinical trial for the molecular diagnostic, Oncotype DX for breast cancer recurrence risk assessment, leading to its coverage by the Centers of Medicare and Medicaid (CMS). He has published extensively in the area of biostatistics, oncology and genomics, and is a holder of multiple key U.S. patents in genomics, algorithm development, and personalized medicine. Dr Watson earned a B.S. in Statistics from California State University East Bay, an M.S. in Computational Statistics from Stanford University, an M.B.A. in Strategic Management from Golden State University, and a PhD in Biostatistics from University of California Los Angeles (UCLA).
