Boulder Biotech Founder Nadia Ferris Wins State Innovation Award

Nadia Ferris, founder of Boulder biotech company Genomarq Diagnostics, received a state innovation award this year recognizing the company's work developing faster diagnostic tools for rare genetic conditions that often take years to properly diagnose through conventional testing.

Ferris, who has a background in genetic research, started the company after a personal experience with a family member's lengthy diagnostic journey convinced her that faster, more accessible genetic testing could meaningfully improve patient outcomes for rare conditions. "Families sometimes spend years going from specialist to specialist before getting an answer," she said. "We're trying to compress that timeline dramatically."

Building Diagnostic Technology From Research Roots

Genomarq's core technology emerged from research Ferris conducted during her academic career, which she later licensed from her former university to start the company. The transition from academic research to commercial product development required Ferris to learn regulatory and business skills largely outside her scientific training, a learning curve she says was steep but necessary.

The company has worked closely with several Colorado hospital systems to validate its diagnostic tools in clinical settings, a partnership Ferris says has been essential both for regulatory approval processes and for refining the product based on real clinical usage patterns rather than purely laboratory conditions.

Recognition and What Comes Next

The state innovation award recognizes Colorado companies developing technology with significant potential economic and social impact, and Ferris says the recognition has helped raise the company's profile with potential investors and hospital system partners. Genomarq is currently working through regulatory approval processes needed to expand clinical use of its diagnostic tools beyond its current pilot hospital partnerships.

Ferris says she remains focused on rare genetic conditions specifically, resisting suggestions from some investors to broaden the company's diagnostic focus to more common conditions with larger potential markets. "The rare disease community is underserved precisely because it's not seen as a big enough market," she said. "That's exactly why we're staying focused here."