Novel Therapeutics:
Cell Competition Therapeutics: Reprogramming the Liver to Reject Metastatic Cancer
Isaac S. Chan, M.D., Ph.D.
- Assistant Professor of Internal Medicine (Hematology and Oncology),
- Department of Molecular Biology,
- Harold C. Simmons Comprehensive Cancer Center,
- UT Southwestern Medical Center
Most cancer deaths are caused not by the original tumor, but by its ability to spread, or metastasize, to vital organs. Dr. Isaac Chan discovered that when cancer spreads to the liver, it does not just grow, it competes, forcing out healthy liver cells to make space. His team identified SerpinE2, a secreted protein that gives cancer this invasive advantage and then reversed the mechanism using gene therapy. By delivering SerpinE2 to liver cells instead of cancer cells, they empowered healthy tissue to resist invasion, leading to complete tumor regression in mouse models. This is the first therapeutic strategy that turns the host organ into the weapon, launching a new class of cell competition–based therapeutics through the venture InterAct Therapeutics.
