Akshay Sood, MD, receives 2026 Early Career Innovator of the Year Award

Awards from The Ohio State University’s Enterprise for Research, Innovation and Knowledge (ERIK) recognize researchers actively working to further develop the research community and advance university intellectual property, patents and licensed technology.  

Akshay Sood, MD, received the 2026 Early Career Innovator of the Year Award for his creativity, collaborative spirit and entrepreneurial drive that makes a tangible impact on patient care and the broader medical technology landscape. His translational research focuses on advancing diagnostic and therapeutic approaches for urologic cancers, with a particular emphasis on improving outcomes for patients with prostate and urothelial malignancies through biomarker-driven, investigator-initiated clinical trials. His innovative work is characterized by: 

• A distinctive blend of scientific rigor and inventive thinking, leading to the development of technologies that address critical gaps in clinical practice. 
• The creation of a first-in-class, flexible biopsy instrument designed to obtain full-thick tissue samples from luminal organs, which is undergoing the patent application process. This has the potential to transform cancer diagnostics, enabling more accurate staging and personalized treatment.  
• The development of provisional patents for an allograft bioengineered conduit device for urinary diversion, a micro-nanofluidic device enabling rapid, non-invasive detection of tumor DNA in urinary extracellular vesicles, and an invention disclosure for an ink-based biopsy orientation sampling innovation designed to enhance precision mapping in prostate cancer diagnosis. 
• A commitment to multidisciplinary collaboration bringing together engineering, clinical and entrepreneurial expertise to move ideas from bench to bedside and actively foster partnerships with industry and regional stakeholders. 
• Securing significant external funding, including the Keenan Center for Entrepreneurship and NSF I-Corps awards, underscoring his readiness to translate discoveries into commercial products that benefit patients and drive economic development in central Ohio. 

Congratulations to Dr. Sood for receiving this honor, which was recognized during ERIK’s Research and Innovation Showcase on Tuesday, April 7.