Quantification of Her2 expression in breast cancer tumors using plasmonic nanoparticles as protein markers

Principal Investigator:

Michel Meunier
Polytechnique Montréal

Co-investigators

Dominique Trudel
CRCHUM

Cécile Darviot
Vega BioImaging


Project of $478 550 over 2 years

  • Supported by CQDM through:
    Ministère de l’Économie, de l’Innovation et de l’Énergie du Québec (MEIE)
  • And by a co-funding partner:
    • Vega BioImaging 
    • Polytechnique Montréal
    • Pfizer Canada

Challenge

Over the past decade, breast cancer patients with tumors showing amplification of HER2 have seen their life expectancy considerably improved thanks to trastuzumab treatment. Currently, patient eligibility for this treatment is determined using techniques with a significant error rate, as well as reduced sensitivity for sorting cancers based on Her2 expression levels.This results in delayed diagnosis which impacts patients who cannot receive their treatment in a timely manner.

Solution

The primary objective of this project is to demonstrate improved determination of eligibility of breast cancer patients for trastuzumab. To meet this challenge, the research team intends to validate the effectiveness of a new technique based on the counting of gold nanoparticles which will allow both precise detection and quantitative evaluation of the expression of Her2 in breast cancer tumors. The specificity of this technique has already been demonstrated on breast cancer cell lines. The researchers will apply this technique on breast cancer tissues that are already characterized for their levels of Her2 expression to demonstrate an improved determination of breast cancer patients’ eligibility to trastuzumab.

Achievements/Impact

This project will represent an important contribution to personalized medicine as this new approach will allow for better determination of the eligibility of breast cancer patients for dedicated treatments. This innovative technology can be easily integrated into analytical laboratories and will improve the sensitivity of protein detection in cancer patients, while giving them better hopes of being cured and reducing costs for the health system. The proof of concept resulting from this project will help VegaBioImaging, a young Montreal’s startup, to raise funds and establish partnerships to continue the development of this technology.

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