New Delhi, August 8: Dr. Shyam Agarwal, Chairperson of the Medical Oncology Department at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital in New Delhi, stated that real-time observation technology can assist researchers in understanding how cells respond to potential drugs.
He emphasized that this technology could accelerate the detection of subtle biochemical changes and improve the identification of effective treatment methods during pre-clinical research.
Agarwal noted, “Understanding Comprehensive Genome Profiling (CGP) and Minimal Residual Disease Detection (MRD) will enhance doctors’ ability to provide targeted personalized medicine for cancer patients.”
Indian-origin biotech entrepreneur Parmita Mishra, founder and CEO of ‘Precigenetics’ based in San Francisco, which operates a platform that captures real-time biochemical information from living cells, remarked, “When researchers continuously measure how cells behave instead of relying on biological ‘autopsy,’ they can gain insights that were previously impossible to observe.”
Mishra added, “Its impact extends far beyond cancer, encompassing immunology, neuroscience, rare diseases, and regenerative medicine.”
The statement highlighted, “Unlike traditional laboratory techniques that often require staining, fixing, or breaking cells before analysis, this platform continuously monitors living biology. This allows scientists to study cellular behavior over time rather than relying solely on isolated endpoint measurements.”
The development of cancer drugs remains one of the most challenging areas in pharmaceutical research. Industry studies consistently show that most potential oncology drugs fail before reaching patients during clinical development.
Scientists often attribute many failures to the limitations of existing laboratory models, which fail to fully capture the complexity and dynamic behavior of living cells.
According to the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), an estimated 1.4 million new cancer cases were reported in India in 2022.
The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) has projected that the cancer burden in the country will continue to rise over the next decade.
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