Lasers for Medicine: ITMO Alumna’s Startup Aims to Improve Cancer Treatment

Why did you decide to specialize in lasers?

I enrolled in university at 16, back when I didn’t know what I wanted to do in life. However, I knew about laser technologies and understood that a fundamental education in this field would have a multitude of applications. By the way, that turned out to be true: I tried my hand at different fields – first, the metal and oil and gas industries, and later – in medicine. 

At ITMO, I studied technical physics (formerly the Department of Laser Technologies and Environmental Instrumentation, now the Institute of Laser Technologies – Ed.).

What were the most memorable moments from your studies at ITMO?

I liked that the university always supported all kinds of initiatives when it came to research or scientific creativity. Throughout my studies, I’ve witnessed the start of many support programs; the entire academic system was designed in a way that got students involved in real-life lab projects early on in their studies. Starting in my second year of Bachelor’s studies, I’d been working at a lab in my department, participating in Russian Science Foundation-supported projects, and was part of the organizing team of the FLAMN international conference in laser technologies.

One of the projects I worked on as a student focused on searching for oil and gas deposits in the Arctic. For this, we were developing a technology based on Raman spectroscopy, a method that makes it possible to take “fingerprints” from any substance and instantly identify it in the analyzed media.

We also had a separate course on laser technologies in medicine, taught by Prof. Viktor Serebryakov, who contributed greatly to the development of biomedical technologies and inspired me to consider this field.

What was your career path like after graduation?

After graduating from my Master’s program at ITMO, I was offered a double-degree PhD position at the Catholic University of the Sacred Heart (Italy) and KU Leuven (Belgium) in collaboration with the University of Notre Dame (USA). The program focused on optical microscopy and within my thesis, I studied the amplification of laser radiation with special microspheres. We were developing an optical microscopy platform that would help study nanomaterials and dynamic processes at the previously unavailable scale. Later on, these studies led me to applying laser technologies in medicine to study tissues and disease factors in humans.

You now have your own startup. What is the project you are working on and why did you decide to launch it?

In 2023, I returned to Russia and got into technological entrepreneurship. That’s when I decided to focus on developing a photonic endoscope for the treatment of oncological diseases. The topic of my project was also dictated by my father’s illness and eventual passing.

I witnessed people battle their illness and learned how low the survival rate actually is with the methods currently in use, such as chemotherapy and partial or full resection of affected organs. Chemotherapy often harms healthy tissues and leads to side effects (for instance, blood clots or loss of sight), which aren’t always manageable for older patients due to heart issues. As for resection, the body isn’t always capable of adapting to functioning without an organ, which can also be fatal.

I decided to adapt the technologies that I studied for five years as a PhD student to cancer treatment. With a photonic endoscope, it will be possible to treat gastrointestinal cancer in a minimally invasive way. The device would allow clinicians to approach the affected tissue from inside or outside an organ and radiate the tumor.

What advantages does your method have over others?

As I mentioned, the main feature of our technology is its minimal invasiveness: the endoscope can be introduced through the throat or an incision, without complex surgery or the need for any toxic substances to enter the body. Such minimally invasive treatments and equipment are in high demand: laparoscopy (a method in which treatment is conducted through keyhole incisions – Ed.) is often used in favor of major surgery. As this method requires only small incisions, rehabilitation is faster than with conventional methods, taking a few days instead of weeks or even months.

Our method is somewhat similar to photodynamic therapy; however, the issue with the latter is that it requires an additional substance (photosensitizer) to be introduced into the body, which can cause side effects. Moreover, with this method a lot of laser radiation is lost in tissues, so it’s more often used to treat surface-level cancer (such as skin cancer). Our approach can be considered an improvement on photodynamic therapy: we also use radiation, but we don’t require any chemical agents that affect the procedure’s accuracy and efficiency.

What kinds of experts are involved in the project?

We turned to expertise from the country’s leading medical centers, including Saint Luke’s Hospital, Pirogov National Medical and Surgical Center, and the St. Petersburg State University Hospital. Apart from clinicians, I consult with endoscope producers, as well as outsource specific tasks, including optical engineering, to external specialists.

What is the current stage of development?

We already have a prototype. At the moment, we are trying to determine how best to work with tissues and which types of cancer the device would be effective against. Soon we will conduct preclinical trials on minipigs – their gastrointestinal organs are closest to those of humans.

How is your project funded?

I participate in many competitions and initiatives. We were greatly supported by a four-million-ruble grant from the Foundation for Assistance to Small Innovative Enterprises within the Start-1 program.

Recently, I won the national award Russia – Land of Opportunity in the category Science and Technology. At the competition, I talked about my project and also shared my personal story; I hope that it helped my audience find the strength to go on and help others. Thanks to my victory in the competition, I had the chance to attend a meeting with the president, where other participants suggested a number of initiatives on developing their projects and the platform Russia – Land of Opportunity. Having worked abroad for many years, I didn’t see any similar platforms in other countries, so I suggested expanding it beyond Russia to offer everyone a chance to grow. Within the platform, I also took part in the project Female Leader by the Federation Council, where I upgraded my management skills. Being only a scientist isn’t enough if you want to bring a complex project to beyond the lab.

Another major win was at the international competition of startups by women of the BRICS countries in the category Health and Medicine. Now I can promote my project internationally on the BRICS Women's Business Alliance platform.

Participating in various competitions and projects gives me the chance to not only attract investments and new partners, but also promote science.

What is next on your agenda? 

In the next two years, I want us to acquire certification so that we could start clinical trials and start helping people who need it. For this step, we need to first conduct in vitro and in vivo trials. I am confident that we will succeed because laser technologies were already proven efficient in treating early-stage skin cancer.

More generally, I want to develop photon laser technologies for treatment and diagnostics of various diseases in Russia, especially in cardiology. For instance, lasers are already used to detect potentially harmful five-micrometer clots and quickly destroy them. Such methods can help detect cardiovascular diseases at early stages and treat them in time.