1)    What are you doing at Trogenix - what is the mission?

Our mission is to tackle diseases of unmet need, initially focusing on difficult cancers where we can achieve a step change through innovative genetic medicines. While recent advances in cancer care have made important strides, they’ve mainly benefited specific patient subgroups and focused on extending life rather than achieving cures. At Trogenix, we're pioneering a precision genetic medicine with the potential to treat all patients, not just certain subtypes. Our goal is to transform cancer care from chronic disease management to delivering curative outcomes for patients with solid tumours.

2)   What was the novel insight that led you to start the company?

Traditional biopharma approaches have focused on finding a single protein or target. While this strategy has worked in some instances, these victories remain the rare exception. The challenge with solid tumours lies in their complexity – they represent dynamic systems with complex signalling pathways and genetic heterogeneity that undermine the single-target or single pathway approach. Our breakthrough came from flipping this paradigm: rather than attempting to destroy specific proteins that are up regulated in cancer, we use their hyperactive state to express and control anti-cancer payloads through gene therapy.

The key insight stemmed from examining what unifies different patients’ tumours – not a single gene or protein, but their shared cellular identity. We're targeting the master transcriptional network that induces this cell phenotype. With our Odysseus platform we’ve identified Synthetic Super-Enhancers, the critical gene switches that can control this malignant cell state, enabling us to deliver therapeutic genes which can kill and eliminate cancer cells.

3)   Why does this matter? How does the world change if you are successful?

Our technology’s potential extends beyond cancer into regenerative medicine, as it can precisely target diseases involving misbehaving cells while minimising toxicity. This precision represents a significant shift away from traditional aggressive and toxic treatments, such as surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy, which often cause extensive collateral damage to healthy tissue.

In the solid tumours we're initially targeting, five-year survival rates are often less than 5%, and current treatments have significant toxicities. Our precision genetic medicine approach could potentially eradicate these cancers while preserving healthy tissue, dramatically improving the quality of life for patients during treatment.

4)    Why is now the time to build this company? Why has everything else failed?

We're at a unique convergence point where multiple technologies have matured sufficiently. The AAV field has advanced significantly in terms of vectors, safety, and manufacturing capacity.Our understanding of gene regulatory control, validated payloads, and immunotherapy has deepened considerably. And the individual components – the payloads, viral vector delivery, clinical procedures – have all been validated in the clinic. We are bringing these technologies together in a novel way that precisely targets the fundamental unit of the solid tumour – the cell itself.

5)    Who are you / why are you the right people to realise this vision?

We've assembled a team that bridges typically siloed disciplines: synthetic biology, genomics, AI tools, immunotherapy, and gene therapy technologies. The beauty of our gene therapy approach is that we have more control over the two parameters that matter most to patients: safety and efficacy. Within just 12 months, we've moved from laboratory proof of concept to having a product ready for clinical trials.

What's particularly exciting is that we are delivering a therapeutic that stimulates the body's own immune system to treat cancer, potentially providing long-term protection against recurrence transforming the current treatment options and commercial landscape.

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