Development Pipeline
LSO is focusing on three cancers for the initial development of Litx™: Hepatoma, Metastatic Colorectal Cancer and Glioma.
Current Clinical Trials
Phase III trials are underway in hepatocellular carcinoma and colorectal cancer metastatic to the liver.
Litx™ in action
Emitting red light at a discrete frequency and intensity, and for a fixed time period, the Litx™ device activates LS11 in a predictable “kill zone” around the LED array. An activated LS11 molecule causes the production of singlet oxygen which can kill target tissues with minimal side effects through vascular closure and apoptosis, or “programmed cell death.” Constant illumination can activate each molecule of LS11 many times, resulting in a continuous supply of singlet oxygen molecules.
Litx™ Advantages
LSO believes Litx has the potential to become a leading treatment of solid tumors due to its advantages over the primary forms of cancer treatment currently in use. These advantages include the following:
- Litx is a targeted treatment. Destruction of tumor tissue with Litx occurs only where light is delivered in sufficient quantity, thereby sparing the patient the debilitating side effects common to therapies such as radiation and chemotherapy. Litx requires a specific amount of light at a specific wavelength to energize the LS11 drug molecules before tissue destruction occurs, and tissue destruction then occurs only in the immediate vicinity of the LED array. Because the Litx system can control the location and amount of light exposure, it can maintain clean boundaries between destroyed and spared tissue. In addition, LS11 has been shown to accumulate preferentially in tumor tissue, which could be important in the treatment of some solid tumors.
- Litx may be effective across a wide range of solid tumors. Litx causes destruction of tumor tissue when light from the LED array activates LS11 in the immediate vicinity of the light source. Light-activated destruction, unlike other cancer therapies such as radiation or chemotherapy, is independent of tumor-specific biochemistry and therefore may not depend on the type of solid tumor treated.
- Litx may access tumors throughout the body. Life-threatening tumors can be located in areas of the body where surgery is not feasible. Litx can be used in a minimally invasive manner to treat or debulk tumors that cannot be removed surgically or controlled by the other primary therapies.
- Litx is a repeatable treatment. Because the effect of Litx is confined to the area where light is delivered in sufficient quantity, systemic side effects are limited. In addition, LSO’s studies to date indicate that Litx is not susceptible to resistance associated with repeated use. As a result, LSO expects that health care providers will be able to use Litx for repeated treatment of patients with tumors.
- Litx may have a systemic effect on untreated tumors. In 2007, data from several published animal and human studies suggested that the production of large apoptotic masses in tumors using photodynamic therapy yields tumor-specific clones of CD8+ T-cells which infiltrate and reduce distant, untreated tumors. LSO is exploring whether Litx may have a similar systemic effect on untreated tumors.