Catarina Lopes Wins the Maria de Sousa Prize
November 4, 2025
INL proudly announces that PhD candidate and INLer, Catarina Lopes, has been awarded the Maria de Sousa Prize. Now in its 5th edition, the prize pays tribute to the late scientist, Maria de Sousa, and is promoted by Fundação Bial and Ordem dos Médicos. Its mission is to support and encourage Portuguese Researchers, aged 35 or younger, advancing Health Sciences.
The award ceremony takes place today, 4 November, in Lisbon. Catarina Lopes joins Neuza Domingues, Bruna Meira, Ângela Fernandes, Diogo Reis Carneiro as the five distinguished recipients. Altogether, the prize constitutes a sum of 150K euros and carries the sponsorship of the President of the Republic.
The Project
Catarina Lopes is a PhD candidate in Molecular and Cellular Biotechnology at the University of Porto, specialising in early gastric cancer research. She has co-authored 10 international publications, presented at over 20 conferences, and combines expertise in molecular biology, bioinformatics, and machine learning for biomarker discovery.
Her winning project, SNIFF: Volatile organic compounds in saliva for non-invasive detection of gastric cancer, proposes the development of a saliva-based, affordable diagnostic tool, capable of detecting gastric cancer at an early stage.
The research will analyse volatile organic compounds (VOCs), as non-evasive biomarkers for gastric cancer. VOCs mirror metabolic changes linked to inflammation, bacterial colonisation, or cancerous transformation, and can be detected in biofluids, such as saliva. A case-control study will be conducted at IPO-Porto, comparing saliva samples from healthy individuals and patients with confirmed gastric cancer.
To ensure clinical applicability, the team plans to integrate quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) sensors for selective VOC detection, paving the way for miniaturised, point-of-care diagnostic devices. This collaborative effort involves clinicians from IPO-Porto, international experts in VOC profiling from the Medical University of Gdansk, and nanotechnology specialists at INL.
Portugal has the highest incidence of stomach cancer in Western Europe, making early detection critical to improving survival rates. A low-cost, scalable diagnostic solution could play a vital role in achieving this goal. If successful, this innovation could also help prioritise high-risk individuals for diagnostic endoscopy, ensuring timely and targeted care.
