The Division of Research Administration and Industry Ventures is composed of multiple departments that work closely together to enable research collaborations between MD?Anderson and industry. From internal approval processes for contract execution and grant submission, to intellectual property management and strategic business development, the division helps facilitate strategic partnership opportunities on behalf of the institution.
How We Partner with Industry
Strategic Alliances
Strategic alliances aim to provide space for innovative collaborations to accelerate breakthrough discoveries in cancer research. Our goal at the Office of Strategic Industry Ventures is to develop deeper and more robust relationships with companies that share a similar vision and goal.
Technology Commercialization
Technology transfer aims to transition institutional intellectual property to third parties for further development and commercialization. We cultivate relationships with reputable entities and entrepreneurs with a proven record of advancing technologies to the market.
Creative Solutions
The Office of Strategic Industry Ventures and Office of Technology Commercialization teams collaborate routinely to align interests and goals with stakeholders to deliver innovative pathways and contractual frameworks to partner with industry.
Highlights
MD Anderson and TOPPAN Holdings announce strategic alliance to co-develop organoid technology for evaluating cancer treatments
- 3D cell culture technology may allow researchers to rapidly test a variety of treatments directly on patient biopsies
- Teams will evaluate technology as clinical tool for personalized cancer therapy
- Collaboration will aim to obtain CAP/CLIA certification of organoid-based assay, followed by clinical studies in multiple indications
Â鶹ӳ» MD Anderson Cancer Center and today announced a strategic alliance to advance the development of TOPPAN Holdings¡¯ invivoid? 3D cell culture technology as a tool for personalized cancer treatments and drug screening efforts.
This collaboration brings together TOPPAN Holdings¡¯ innovative organoid culture technology and MD Anderson¡¯s clinical and research expertise to accelerate the development of new clinical tools to better inform physicians about expected outcomes from a given therapy.
Under the agreement, researchers from TOPPAN Holdings and MD Anderson will work collaboratively toward obtaining College of American Pathologists (CAP)/Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments (CLIA) certification of an organoid-based assay that can be used to evaluate the effectiveness of various cancer therapies on patient-derived samples. The collaborators also will work together on clinical validation studies to evaluate the utility of this tool across several cancer types.
¡°Organoids allow us to model the three-dimensional complexity of human cancers in the lab, thus allowing us to engineer a powerful translational engine ¨C one that could not only predict how patients will respond to therapy before treatment begins but also could help to reimagine how we discover and validate next-generation therapies," said Donna Hansel, M.D., Ph.D., division head of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at MD?Anderson. ¡°Through this collaboration, we hope to make meaningful progress in modeling cancer biology for therapeutic innovation.¡±
TOPPAN Holdings¡¯ proprietary 3D cell culture technology is capable of rapidly establishing organoid models directly from patient biopsies or other tissues. If validated clinically, researchers may be able to test a variety of potential treatments in the laboratory to understandwhich approach may work best for the patient. This could help to improve treatment outcomes as well as avoid unnecessary treatments that may not be effective.
"The strategic alliance with MD Anderson paves a promising path toward personalized cancer medicine," said Hiroshi Asada, head of the Business Innovation Center at TOPPAN Holdings. "We believe our proprietary invivoid? 3D cell culture technology, by enabling the rapid establishment of organoid models directly from patient biopsies, has strong potential to help identify more effective treatment options and reduce the likelihood of unnecessary therapies. Through collaboration on CAP/CLIA certification and clinical validation, we aim to bring this innovation closer to real-world patient care and contribute meaningfully to the advancement of cancer medicine."
Initial work will build upon preclinical research previously conducted under a collaboration with TOPPAN Holdings and MD Anderson researchers. Upon obtaining CAP/CLIA certification, observational clinical studies will be designed with the goal of evaluating how the organoid assay aligns with clinical outcomes. With initial success in those efforts, the research teams may work toward prospective clinical studies, in which the assay could be used to guide treatment approaches.
TOPPAN Holdings will provide funding of approximately $10 million over five years to advance joint research activities and support efforts to obtain CAP/CLIA certification.
MD Anderson and Myriad Genetics form strategic alliance to evaluate clinical utility of Myriad¡¯s molecular residual disease assay
Â鶹ӳ» MD Anderson Cancer Center and today announced a five-year strategic alliance to accelerate the clinical evaluation and development of Myriad¡¯s molecular residual disease (MRD) assay.
This strategic alliance brings together the longstanding oncology diagnostic experience of Myriad Genetics and the clinical and translational research expertise of MD Anderson to create a portfolio of studies to evaluate the clinical validity and utility of Myriad¡¯s Precise MRD.
¡°We look forward to working with MD Anderson to evaluate Precise MRD¡¯s utility in cancer care,¡± said Dale Muzzey, Ph.D., chief scientific officer at Myriad Genetics. ¡°Our collaborative studies will explore how our ultrasensitive Precise MRD test can enhance treatment strategies for providers and improve patient outcomes. We are optimistic that our MRD test¡¯s ability to quantitatively detect tumor-derived DNA at very low levels ¡ª far lower than is possible with first-generation MRD tests ¡ª will open new opportunities for therapy response and recurrence monitoring.¡±
Under the terms of the agreement, MD Anderson and Myriad Genetics will collaborate to design both retrospective and prospective studies to investigate the test¡¯s utility in breast, gastrointestinal, genitourinary and gynecological cancers. The goal of these studies is to generate evidence that supports national guideline inclusion and healthcare provider adoption. MD Anderson investigators will lead patient enrollment, sample collection, clinical data analysis and manuscript writing. Myriad will provide funding, MRD testing and scientific research support as well as potential milestone and royalty payments under the collaboration.
¡°This strategic alliance brings together cutting-edge technology and expertise from Myriad with disease-focused expertise and clinical trials excellence from MD Anderson,¡± said , division head of Cancer Medicine at MD Anderson. ¡°We aim to explore numerous applications for MRD testing, including monitoring patients for relapse after treatment, identifying high-risk patients in need of clinical trials and, potentially, intervention approaches.¡±
The alliance expands upon existing collaborations between MD Anderson researchers and Myriad, including ongoing studies in breast cancer and renal cell carcinoma.
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