Project summary
AllVascular is a Sydney based medical device company that has developed a novel vascular access platform to improve the delivery and effectiveness of anti-cancer agents to solid organs.
What is the issue?
The pharmacological advancement of anti-cancer agents in the past several decades has led to the introduction of new treatment regimens for treating advanced solid organ cancers. While these regimens have brought about improved patient outcomes, a significant portion of the treated population still show only limited or no response. For many patients, a major treatment limiting factor is the side effects these anti-cancer agents induce on the whole body. These side effects dramatically impact patient quality of life and often cause treatment to be discontinued without eliminating all tumour cell activity.
What does the technology aim to do?
In order to address this issue, AllVascular has developed a vascular access platform that allows clinicians to repeatedly access a cancerous organ such as the liver or pancreas through a minimally invasive approach. The platform allows catheters to isolate the blood flow to the organ. This setup allows for high concentration anti-cancer agents to be administered directly to the target organ without spilling into the systemic circulation, in order to maximise potency while minimising side effects. The reduced toxicity and ease of access afforded by the platform, allows the treatment to be administered up to twice a week for one month. Ultimately, the aim of the treatment is to improve the effectiveness of anti cancer agents and thereby increase patient quality of life and clinical response.
The technology’s intellectual property was developed by Sydney based vascular surgeon and biomedical engineer Prof. Rodney Lane. The device has TGA and EU marketing approval and is currently being used successfully in Sydney hospitals to treat end stage patients suffering with liver metastases that have spread from the colon. The initial pilot study was recognised at the Royal Australia and New Zealand College of Radiologists where Prof. John Magnussun (Macquarie University) was awarded the Best Scientific Presentation and subsequently presented results at the largest European interventional radiology conference – CIRSE.
The NSW Medical Devices Fund will play a pivotal role to further the commercialisation of the technology by supporting a large clinical study at Sydney hospitals including, North Shore Hospital, Sydney Adventist Hospital and Macquarie University Hospital for treating patients with liver cancer that has spread from the colon. The platform and treatment method is also being trialled in a pilot study for patients with locally advanced unresectable pancreatic cancer with early results expected to be published late next year.