10/27/2026
PITTSBURGH, Oct. 27, 2026 – Researchers at the University of Pittsburgh and UPMC Hillman Cancer Center received a two-year, $4.385 million award from the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H) to lead a pioneering program in quantum theranostics, exploring the potential of quantum physics to revolutionize cancer imaging and radiation therapy.
At the heart of the project is an ambitious question: Can quantum particles generated during radiation therapy be harnessed to reveal information about cancer that conventional imaging may miss?
The program is led by Mohammed Saiful Huq, Ph.D., director of medical physics in the Department of Radiation Oncology at Pitt and UPMC Hillman. Heath Skinner, M.D., Ph.D., professor and chair of the Department of Radiation Oncology at Pitt and UPMC Hillman, will serve as a co-investigator.
This research will combine computational modeling, advanced detector technology and radiation oncology devices to investigate quantum entanglement in photon pairs generated during radiation treatment. If the underlying science is successfully demonstrated, these signals could eventually be used to provide real-time information about tumors and their surrounding environment, potentially revealing signatures of the tumor microenvironment, while treatment is being delivered.
“Medical physics has always translated advances in physics into advances in medicine, from X-rays and radiation therapy to CT, PET, MRI and artificial intelligence,” said Huq. "We are now asking whether quantum physics can provide an entirely new source of information about cancer. Our immediate goal is to prove the science.”
“By bringing quantum physics, medical physics, engineering and cancer biology together, this team is exploring a scientific frontier with the potential to change how we think about imaging and adaptive radiation therapy,” said Skinner. “If successful, it may ultimately allow us to create new ways to see and characterize tumors to then adapt treatment based on information obtained while the patient is being treated.”
This marks the first direct ARPA-H research award to Pitt's Department of Radiation Oncology and further strengthens the role of UPMC Hillman Cancer Center as a leader in advancing innovative cancer research and treatment technologies.
“Pitt researchers' leadership at the forefront of envisioning a personalized medicine approach to cancer treatment in real time is proof of UPMC Hillman Cancer Center’s expertise in innovative treatment technologies,” said Anantha Shekhar, M.D., Ph.D., senior vice chancellor for health sciences and John and Gertrude Petersen Dean of the School of Medicine at Pitt. “We thank ARPA-H for the opportunity.”
The Pitt-led program is funded through the ARPA-H Health Science Futures Mission Office project, which aims to explore new approaches to capturing information about tissues and molecules that may not be detectable using existing anatomical, functional or molecular imaging techniques. This project will investigate whether quantum-entangled photon measurements can provide a foundation for such imaging approaches.
“Breakthroughs in cancer care often begin with asking questions that seem impossible to answer,” said John Byrd, M.D., director of UPMC Hillman. “The ARPA-H award enables our scientists to explore an entirely new frontier at the intersection of quantum science and oncology. While the work is highly impactful, it has the potential to generate insights that could fundamentally change how we understand, image and treat cancer in the future.”
The project formally launched on October 14, 2026, at Pitt, with ARPA-H Program Manager Wilfred Ngwa, Ph.D., members of the ARPA-H team and senior leadership from Pitt and UPMC Hillman.
The multidisciplinary program brings together expertise from Pitt and UPMC Hillman with the University of Pennsylvania, led by Steven Avery, Ph.D.; UMass Lowell, led by Erno Sajo, Ph.D., and Hugo Ribeiro, Ph.D.; and Quantum Theranostics, Inc., led by Gustavo H. Olivera, Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer, with Bashkim Ziberi, Ph.D., Chief Scientific Officer. Quantum Theranostics, Inc., is the industry partner on the project.
