Cancer. If ever there has been a disease that has dogged human life, it is this one. Seemingly random, often hidden, it is an all too often lethal illness that is almost older than life itself. There is evidence from 70-80 million years ago that even the mighty dinosaurs suffered from this scourge.
First human records date back to Babylonian time (1750 BCE), with observations and varying treatment methods attempted throughout history. Advancements in cancer research and removal options have progressed over the centuries: the first surgical removal in 50 AD Italy, the first chemotherapy in 1775, up to the intensive and varied methods utilized today, with common options being chemotherapy, radiation and surgery.
Despite the almost eternal battle between humans and cancer, an outright cure remains elusive. Claiming 10 million lives in 2020 and expected to increase to 28.4 million by 2040, it is the second cause of death worldwide.
It is a struggle that consumes enormous resources: physical, temporal, and financial. Total global expenditures in cancer research reached $24.5 billion between 2016-2020. And the reality behind this figure? Most of it is lost, with some reasons being lack of data sharing, pressure to publish preliminary results, poor clinical trial designs, difficulty reproducing results, and finally, poor predictive models.
Specifically, the biggest hurdle to developing effective cancer medicines is the reliance on outdated testing methods, primarily animal testing and 2D cell cultures. These practices simply don’t replicate the complexity of human tumours and fail to account for the myriad factors that affect how a tumour grows and responds to treatments.
Because of this, the failure rate of cancer drugs is staggeringly high: more than 90% of cancer treatments that pass preclinical tests in animals fail during human trials. The lack of human-based treatment options leads to inaccurate predictions of a drug’s effectiveness on real patients, resulting in significant costs to human lives and financial strain.
To address the financial and practical strain caused by non-human experiment models, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has recently announced to replace animal testing with more effective, human-relevant models — and approach designed to improve drug safety, reduce animal experimentation, lower R&D costs and ultimately accelerate the process of drug development.
TissueTinker, recent McGill Innovation Fund (MIF) Develop award winner, is well positioned to capitalize on this emerging regulatory trend, with goals to tackle the inefficiencies in cancer drug testing by designing tumour models that accurately simulate human cancer growth.
Introducing 3D Bioprinting
Cancer may be as old as the dinosaurs, but the tools being developed today are nothing short of futuristic. TissueTinker models are a beacon of such innovation and ingenuity.
Using 3D bioprinting (think 3D printing, but with bioink), TissueTinker creates complex, miniaturized models that replicate healthy and diseased tissues side by side. The team has mastered spatial control over where cells are placed, creating models that mimic the way tumours develop in the body.
The models can be as small as 300 microns, allowing researchers to analyze specific physiological properties like hypoxic cores (low-oxygen areas within tumours). “This is the sweet spot size,” co-founder Benjamin Ringler explained. “It’s large enough that it’s still valuable for testing purposes, but small enough to minimize resources.” Ringler recently finished his master's at McGill in translational biomedical engineering.
Not only has TissueTinker achieved the optimal size for their tumours to balance cost and accuracy, but the tumours can also be customized based on the desired research question. “The ability to customize the tumour really allows researchers to gain deep, targeted insights into how cancer behaves at a micro level”, Ringler explained. This unique property allows researchers to obtain specialized, tailored results, which plays a significant role in the success and advancement of these drugs to the next stage of testing.
“Because the testing environment more readily simulates the human body, researchers can better assess and understand whether or not their drug works before reaching clinical trial stages,” Ringler detailed. “This is key for drug progression and curbing financial waste in the industry.” With clinical development costing upwards of $1–2 billion per drug, and 67% of those costs concentrated in clinical trial stages, tools that improve early predictability aren’t just scientifically valuable; they’re financially critical. Early identification of ineffective candidates can save hundreds of millions by preventing them from ever entering trials in the first place.
Growing in Partnership
Tackling one of the most complex challenges in healthcare requires more than innovation, it takes strategic guidance. For TissueTinker, the MIF has been a critical catalyst for development. “The MIF has far exceeded our expectations,” Ringer explained. “Other programs are often too hands-off, but the MIF has provided tailored support, offering specific advice and helping us think critically about not just our next step, but our many steps down the road.”
The MIF’s guidance has been instrumental in refining their approach. “With funding and mentorship, the MIF has given us access to experts who have challenged our assumptions and pushed us forward on our mission to transform cancer drug testing,” Ringler explained.
Joined by co-founders Madison Santos and Isabelle Dummer, the team aims to further develop their technology and extend their tumour library this year, working to offer an entire suite of models that can be tailored to the needs of different companies. The expansion of the tumour library would characterize and formulate the design and production, with the ultimate goal to license the entire platform.
Santos is currently working on their PhD, with experience in cell therapy and biomedical engineering, while Dummer recently graduated from a masters in translational biomedical engineering. Combined, the three co-founders have experience in biomedical engineering, cellular and gene therapy, and medtech development, spanning research, product design, and quality systems.
“We’re not just solving a problem; we’re rethinking the way we approach cancer drug development,” said Ringler. After a centuries-long fight against cancer, the battle enters a new era reimagined with living models and smart research design.
