The likelihood of ever developing cancer has increased significantly over the past three decades. Approximately half of all Dutch citizens will receive a cancer diagnosis at some point. Around 1990, it was one in three. The increase can largely be attributed to higher life expectancy. Researchers from the Netherlands Comprehensive Cancer Organization (IKNL) conclude that the likelihood of Dutch people dying from cancer, however, has barely changed. So, more people are being diagnosed with cancer, but the risk of dying from it has not increased. This is due to improved prognosis, but there is still an enormous amount of work to be done.
Most people know Ronald Plasterk as a politician. However, he has a long career as a molecular biologist and scientist. In 1999, he received the Spinoza Prize for his scientific work. After his tenure as minister, Plasterk returned to science in 2017.
In December 2018, he co-founded Frame Therapeutics with two partners, focusing on developing immunotherapy against cancer. This company was sold in June 2022 to the German publicly traded biopharmaceutical firm CureVac. Now, once again with two co-founders, he has started the start-up Tzu Cancer Therapeutics, specializing in circulating tumor cells.
The name refers to Sun Tzu (544–496 BC), a Chinese philosopher and military strategist, who famously said, ‘Know your enemy, and you will win a hundred battles.’ Plasterk no longer gives political interviews but is happy to talk about his new ventures. “We have not yet won the war against cancer because we do not know the enemy well enough.
Last year, Plasterk attended a conference in Italy organized by the European Association for Cancer Research, where he was invited to give a lecture. “I was deeply impressed by the session following mine, which was about circulating tumor cells. This is the future, I thought. Afterwards, I approached the chair of that session, a Greek professor, to ask some questions. She mentioned they would have a meeting three months later on a small island near Athens. So, I decided to go there.
Circulating tumor cells (CTCs), which detach from the original tumor and travel through the bloodstream, cause metastases in other parts of the body. Plasterk explains: “These cells can be purified from the blood. That alone is phenomenal. Blood contains millions of blood cells, and there are now techniques to isolate hundreds or thousands of tumor cells from them. You can purify them to the point where you end up with individual tumor cells, each in separate tubes.
As an example, he mentions a woman with breast cancer. The woman undergoes treatment, where the tumor is surgically removed, often followed by a short course of chemotherapy and radiation. If needed, a cosmetic reconstruction surgery is performed, and she goes home to resume her life. “For two out of three women, the cancer never returns, but one in three experiences a recurrence a few years later because the risk of metastases is significant. When that happens, the prognosis for recovery suddenly becomes grim. But what we now know is that a year before these metastases are detected, circulating tumor cells are already present in the blood. And this is a stage where treatment is often still possible.”
At the aforementioned meeting in Greece, he encountered two primary groups: people skilled in purifying cells and, on the other hand, clinicians who explore how these cells can benefit patients. “But there’s a whole field in between,” he explains. “And that’s what we do: characterizing the cells molecularly and decoding their DNA and RNA.”
Tzu is now working on a so-called cancer catalog. This involves completely redoing the human genome project for each patient using a series of individual circulating tumor cells. This means deciphering the DNA and RNA composition of every cell. What used to cost hundreds of millions and take years can now be accomplished in just a few weeks.
Plasterk explains: “Due to the enormous amount of data, it’s essential to store everything securely and efficiently in the cloud. There are tremendous opportunities in bioinformatics, with large computers analyzing these datasets. The goal is to identify the series of cells that are the bad guys and then neutralize them with personalized therapy before they cause harm. I hope and expect that our company can make a significant contribution to curing cancer.
Inspired by the wisdom of Sun Tzu, we aim to revolutionize cancer treatment through cutting-edge, personalized solutions that enhance patient care and outcomes.
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