Proving that Foods Can Help Fight Cancer

A mass spectrometry technique developed by Trillion Genomics is poised to revolutionise cancer prevention, diagnosis and therapy, which includes the use of nutraceuticals - safe treatments based
on compounds found in food. Presenting findings at a breakthrough technology showcase event, (Cambridge, September 8th) Günter Schmidt, who founded the company along with Andrew Thompson, explains their technology’s role in cancer treatment: "When I worked in the pharmaceutical industry I realised how laborious drug development was - it takes about 10 years and endless safety tests to bring a drug to market. If a compound known to be safe, such as one found in food, could be used to prevent disease then this would bypass slow and costly safety tests.

"Our technology enables researchers to understand how such nutraceuticals work, making it possible to develop effective drugs from natural compounds and to provide the scientific evidence that is needed to register them as therapeutics." The company’s technology detects multiple large biomolecules in tissue sections by tagging the proteins ready for mass spectrometry imaging. This makes efficacy studies possible on nutraceuticals revealing how to use these nutrients as drugs and determine the appropriate dose.

Lycopene found in high quantities in tomatoes, has been shown to slow the development of prostate cancer and it has already been certified as 100% safe. Once lycopene’s mode of action has been determined, a scientifically-proven treatment can be developed. Two thirds of cases of prostate cancer are very slow to develop, and the side effects of treatment are often worse than the symptoms of the cancer. If it were possible to determine the type of cancer, men with slow-growing cancers could have the progression of their disease slowed by food supplements, rather than going through chemotherapy.

As well as its role in drug development, this technology could also be applied to diagnostics. Andrew explains: "When blood screening suggests that a patient may have cancer, the next stage is to perform a biopsy. Analysis of prostate biopsies is currently based on visual observations rather than molecular markers.

"Our technique uses a method of molecular fingerprinting which enables multiple large molecules such as proteins or genes to be labelled by tagging. This has the advantage that multiple markers can be detected at the same time, allowing more information to be obtained from tissue samples. For example, we can detect molecules associated with high growth-rates so can distinguish between aggressive and slow-growing cancers."

Günter concludes that the technology allows researchers to gain more information about metabolic pathways, providing new insights into the action of cancers and the drugs used to treat them. “Our technology can be used to create supplements as safe as food yet as effective as drugs. We’re very excited about this possibility and we’re working with a Cambridge oncology group to progress this for prostate cancer. It is not just prostate cancer we can help prevent; treatment of a very wide range of diseases could benefit from our technology."