• Prof. Avigdor Scherz
    During his studies at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem (HUJ), Prof. Avigdor Scherz found great interest in different aspects of the interactions between light and biological systems. Later, while exploring photosynthesis as a faculty member at the Weizmann Institute of Science, he realized that the destructive potential of radicals photogenerated by chlorophyll from plants and bacteria can be used for tumor eradication. Together with Prof. Yoram Salomon, he developed a new approach to cancer therapy termed Vascular-Targeted Photodynamic Therapy (VTP). Inspired by Nature this modality views tumors as organs that put at risk the whole organism and can be destroyed through excessive generation of oxygen and nitric oxide radicals confined to the tumor circulation. Over the years, hundreds of chlorophyll derivatives were synthesized at the Scherz lab and tested for their utility as VTP agents. 

    TOOKAD®soluble was selected for clinical trials and recently gained approval in Mexico, Israel and the European Community for first-line treatment of low-risk prostate cancer. TOOKAD-VTP is a 60-80-min procedure that involves image-guided insertion of thin optical fibers to the tumor vicinity, short intravenous infusion of TOOKAD®soluble followed by laser illumination for ~20 min. Occlusion of the vasculature, followed by self-propagating cell death, leads to tumor necrosis within 16-24 hours. The treatment differentiates between normal and malignant tissue and can be safely applied to any solid tumor. Rapidly evolving anti-tumor immunity was found to achieve annihilation of remote micro-metastases when combined with immune modulation. Four ongoing clinical trials in Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center are currently assessing the safety and efficacy of this new therapeutic modality for obstructive esophageal, breast, urinary tract and more advanced prostate cancer. 
    Prof. Yoram Salomon (Z"l)
    served as professor at the Weizmann Institute of Science. Yoram was born by the Kinnereth and grew up in Jerusalem. Yoram passed away in September 2017, after almost 9 years of a fierce battle against cancer. Prior to his work on photodynamic therapy (PDT) of cancer, Yoram investigated signal transduction via G protein-coupled receptors and the downstream pathways. These studies led to his interest in photoaffinity cross-linking of nearest-neighbor proteins, which eventually led to his PDT research.

    Prof. Salomon received Ph.D. from the Hebrew University in 1972. He trained at the National Institutes of Health before joining the Weizmann Institute in 1975. Seven years later he became Head of the Department of Biological Services. He later served as Head of the Department of Hormone Research and Chair of the Scientific Council of the Weizmann Institute. 

    Yoram will always be remembered for his breakthrough discoveries of mechanisms underlying cellular activation and for his PDT research. Specifically, Yoram’s long-term collaboration with Prof. Avigdor Scherz of the Weizmann Institute led to the development of Tookad-Soluble Vascular Targeted Therapy (TS-VTP®), which earned the duo the 2012 Sergio Lombroso Prize. TS-VTP® has been approved in Europe and Mexico for treatment of prostate cancer and is undergoing clinical trials for several other cancer types. This cancer ablation procedure innovatively combines organic chemistry, laser technology and tumor biology. Essentially, it consists of the activation of a photosensitizer by laser light while in vasculature. The photosensitizer locally absorbs light and transfers energy to oxygen molecules creating reactive oxygen species, which block blood supply to tumors.
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