This new painless and self-administred blood test could replace needles

Imagine this: you’re sitting in your kitchen with a cup of coffee. No white lab coats. No antiseptic smells.

No tourniquets.

You press a small, ping-pong-ball-sized device to your arm for two minutes, and just like that—your blood sample is collected, ready to be mailed to a lab.

No needles.

No pain.

No drama.

This isn’t a sci-fi scene.

It’s real, it’s happening, and it might just rewrite the script on how we think about blood tests.

Meet the device developed by Tasso Inc., a company founded by University of Wisconsin-Madison grads, which is disrupting the $82 billion global blood testing industry with a deceptively simple idea: why not let your skin give up its secrets without puncturing a vein?

Using a vacuum-based microfluidic system, Tasso’s device painlessly draws blood from capillaries just beneath the skin.

The collected sample is then mailed—or hand-delivered—to a lab for analysis.

It’s already capable of handling routine tests like cholesterol panels, blood sugar readings, cancer screenings, and infection markers.

And users are saying the same thing: it’s almost entirely painless.

But here’s the kicker: this technology may not just be more comfortable—it could be more powerful, more accessible, and ultimately more life-saving than traditional blood draws. We’ll get to that soon.

The Invention That Wants to Make Needles Obsolete

If you’ve ever avoided a blood test because of needle anxiety, you’re not alone.

Surveys estimate up to 25% of adults suffer from needle phobia—and it’s not just about discomfort.

For some, the fear is so intense that it becomes a barrier to routine health screenings, putting them at risk for untreated conditions.

That’s exactly the pain point that Ben Casavant, vice president and co-founder of Tasso Inc., wants to address.

“The technology relies on the forces that govern the flow of tiny fluid streams,” Casavant explained in a press release. “At these scales, surface tension dominates over gravity, and that keeps the blood in the channel no matter how you hold the device.”

Translation?

You don’t need to be lying flat with a tourniquet squeezing your arm.

The device uses capillary action—the same physics that draws ink into a paper towel—to wick blood gently from the skin’s surface into a sterile container.

Science writer Maddie Stone at Gizmodo described it succinctly:

“Rather than puncturing a vein, when the user holds this device against his or her skin, it creates a slight vacuum that immediately starts to pull blood from many microscopic open channels called capillaries. The device can currently extract about 0.15 cubic centimeters of blood, enough for most routine lab analyses.”

That’s a drop smaller than a green pea—and yet it holds enough data to paint a biochemical portrait of your health.

The DARPA Connection and a $3 Million Bet on the Future

While this all sounds sleek and consumer-friendly, it also caught the attention of a much more demanding customer: the U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA).

DARPA awarded Tasso a $3 million grant—not just for the novelty of the tech, but for its potential to change how diagnostics work in remote and high-risk settings, like battlefields or underserved regions.

Why does this matter?

Because storing and shipping blood isn’t as simple as sealing an envelope. Blood is fragile. Temperatures matter.

And you can’t exactly toss it in the fridge before popping it in the mail.

DARPA’s funding is helping Tasso solve that logistics puzzle—finding ways to maintain sample integrity during shipping, without refrigeration.

“The aim of the DARPA funding is to figure out how to keep the blood at an optimal temperature for the trip to the lab,” reported Medical Daily’s Stephanie Castillo.

That opens up major implications—not just for soldiers, but for anyone without easy access to clinics or hospitals.

Think rural areas, developing countries, or people with mobility issues.

In short: this isn’t just about making blood tests easier—it’s about making them possible.

What If Blood Draws Were the Outdated Option?

Let’s pause for a second.

For over a century, blood draws have followed the same basic formula: roll up your sleeve, find a vein, insert a needle, collect a vial.

We’ve accepted it as inevitable.

Uncomfortable?

Sure.

But necessary?

That’s the assumption.

But what if that assumption is wrong?

What if vein-based blood draws are less accurate, less consistent, and less useful than they appear?

It’s not a wild idea.

Capillary blood—what the Tasso device collects—is increasingly recognized as equally reliable for many standard tests, with some surprising advantages.

Capillary blood reflects real-time metabolic changes faster than venous blood.

It’s more representative of what’s happening at the cellular level—where nutrients are absorbed, waste products are exchanged, and immune responses are initiated.

And because it’s collected painlessly and without needing a skilled technician, samples can be taken more frequently, leading to richer data for chronic conditions like diabetes, autoimmune disorders, and even cancer.

“We see our specialty as people who need to test semi-frequently, or infrequently, to monitor cancer or chronic infectious diseases,” said Casavant. “Instead of buying a machine or expensive equipment, we ship you this device, you put it on your arm for two minutes and send it back to the lab.”

The idea flips the medical model on its head.

No more “go to the lab and wait.”

The lab comes to you—quietly, efficiently, and painlessly.

What a Needle-Free Future Looks Like

Let’s zoom out and think about this.

If Tasso’s technology hits the mainstream—and all signs suggest it will—it could redefine not just how we test blood, but how we interact with healthcare entirely.

Here’s what a needle-free future could mean:

Home monitoring for chronic illness: No more schlepping to a lab every two weeks. Just press, collect, mail, repeat.
Preventative screenings for everyone: People who avoid doctors because of fear or inconvenience suddenly have no excuse.
Real-time population health: With more frequent testing, we get better data—and better predictions—about outbreaks, metabolic disorders, and public health trends.
Global reach: In countries without clinical infrastructure, this tech could mean the difference between early detection and silent progression.

And let’s not forget the psychological layer.

When you take away the needle, you remove the dread.

You lower the barrier to entry.

And that alone could drive higher participation in routine testing.

It’s healthcare that meets people where they are—not the other way around.

From a Dorm Room Dream to a Disruptive Reality

The Tasso story isn’t just about clever engineering—it’s about persistence.

The founders began as students at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

They weren’t looking to build a Silicon Valley unicorn.

They were trying to solve a simple problem: make blood testing suck less.

They turned that modest vision into a venture that’s now on DARPA’s radar, in clinical pilot programs, and eyeing FDA clearance.

And let’s be clear: this isn’t vaporware.

Unlike Theranos, Tasso is open about what their tech does and doesn’t do.

There’s no mystery machine, no black box. Just a tiny vacuum device and some elegant microfluidics.

That transparency is winning them not just funding—but trust.

Why This Isn’t Just Another Health Gadget

We’re living in a golden age of health tracking—smartwatches, sleep rings, glucose monitors. It’s easy to lump Tasso’s device into the “cool but niche” category.

But here’s the difference: blood is still the gold standard in diagnostics.

You can wear a ring that tracks your pulse, sure.

But when your doctor wants to know if your cholesterol’s too high or whether your white blood cells are spiking, they’ll still ask for blood.

What Tasso is offering isn’t an alternative to real data—it’s a better delivery system for it.

It’s as if Apple reinvented the USB stick.

Same functionality.

Completely different experience.