To date, the majority of cancer therapies have been developed to specifically target cancer cells, without much or any emphasis placed on the way in which those cancer cells interact with and alter their environment in order to thrive. Over the past several years, however, a greater understanding of tumor microenvironments has begun to emerge, and this is shaping the way in which therapies are being developed. Since tumor cells have the ability to evolve quickly in response to their environment, therapies designed to attack them often fail to produce clinical benefit for patients. Instead of targeting cancer cells, emerging therapies are focused on enhancing the body’s own ability to fight these cells. This approach, since it is not specific to cancer cells themselves, holds the potential to treat many types of cancer.

Rgenix is a company at the forefront of this technology. Today, physician-scientist, CEO, and co-founder, Masoud Tavazoie, joins the podcast to discuss his work in this field. Developed at Rockefeller University, Rgenix’s approach is based on the modeling of interactions between tumors and tumor microenvironments in mice in order to determine the ways in which tumors interact with the body, as well as how and where to apply the therapies they’re developing. Dr. Tavazoie is a wealth of information, discussing the ins and outs of this new approach, the details of the several drug programs they have in clinical development, cancer as a systemic disease, the dynamic interactions between tumors and the immune system, and much more.  

Learn more by visiting https://rgenix.com/ and press play for all the details.