“Cell therapy is at the forefront of modern medicine"

“Cell therapy is at the forefront of modern medicine”

ImmunSkills, a young company based at BioArk in Monthey, is a pioneering initiative in the Swiss biotech landscape. The company is dedicated to the development of innovative cell-based therapies designed to offer a new ray of hope in the fight against cancer.

Using an approach based on the enhancement of immune cells, notably through the integration of a specific enzyme that enables them to resist complex tumor environments, ImmunSkills aims to optimize the efficacy of cancer treatments through cell therapy. Recently, Adolfo Gonzalez, CEO of ImmunSkills, gave an interview to “Le Monde Economique” magazine. Here are some extracts.

Adolfo, can you give us an overview of the current state of research in the field of cell therapy?

Cell therapy, as a field of research, is at the forefront of modern medicine, offering new and promising prospects for the treatment of cancers, particularly solid tumors. Our times are witnessing significant advances that could radically transform the way we approach these complex and resistant diseases. Currently, cell therapy research is focused on two main objectives: firstly, developing more effective treatments for solid cancers, which account for a large proportion of cancer cases and are often the most difficult to treat; secondly, reducing the costs associated with these treatments, to make them accessible to a greater proportion of the population.

At ImmunSkills, we are tackling these challenges with determination, by developing an innovative cell therapy platform. Our approach is characterized by the genetic modification of immune cells, in particular NK (Natural Killer) cells, to enable them to withstand the hostile conditions of the tumor microenvironment and attack solid tumors more effectively. We are also aware of the importance of making these advanced treatments more affordable. To this end, we are working on production methods and operational processes that can significantly reduce therapy costs. Our aim is to contribute to a future where cancer treatments are not only more effective, but also more accessible to all those who need them.

ImmunSkills advances in cell therapy are opening up exciting new prospects for cancer patients. How does your research represent a significant breakthrough?

Our mission at ImmunSkills SA extends far beyond improving cancer treatment through cell therapy. We aim to completely redefine the process of developing and delivering these innovative treatments. Thanks to our advanced technological platform, we are able to produce therapeutic cells on a large scale, facilitating rapid and effective access to treatments. What particularly sets ImmunSkills apart is our close collaboration with our customers. They develop the specific recognition domain to recognize the cancer and provide us with the genetic sequence. We then integrate this sequence into our specialized immune cells, which are already optimized to withstand the tumor microenvironment and capable of growing on a large scale. This synergy enables efficient, large-scale production of targeted cell therapy ready for distribution and administration to patients.

This collaborative approach and our ability to mass-produce mean that treatments can be made available much more rapidly than by traditional methods. For our customers, this means a considerable reduction in development time and costs, enabling them to allocate more resources to innovation and improving patient care.

Read here the full interview with Le Monde Economique (only in French)