IVIC develops drugs to optimize cancer treatment

Published at: 23/04/2026 10:21 AM

The Venezuelan Institute for Scientific Research (IVIC), through the Center for Experimental Medicine, is leading a cutting-edge project focused on small-molecule immunotherapy, a therapeutic alternative that seeks to boost patients' immune systems to combat tumor cells more efficiently and at a lower cost.

According to a press release from the Ministry of Science and Technology (MINCYT), IVIC researcher Ali Mijoba explained that, unlike conventional protein-based immunotherapies (complex biological compounds), the use of synthetic chemical molecules offers strategic advantages in the fight against diseases such as leukemia, lymphomas and solid tumors.

He said that one of the main contributions of this research is the penetrating capacity of these compounds. According to Mijoba, small molecules are easier to cross tissues and reach the specific target of the cell.

“Unlike traditional chemotherapy, which has a cytotoxic effect on both cancer and healthy cells, these molecules are designed to act on specific immune checkpoints, reactivating lymphocytes and NK cells to destroy the tumor without affecting healthy tissue,” said the expert.

He added that the development of this line of research in the country also responds to a strategic need. He specified that currently, biological treatments are expensive and face logistical limitations when it comes to importing them.

“At our Institute, we are developing or are tackling a project to develop compounds or drugs made of chemical molecules that would act or encourage the stimulation of the immune system, through the inhibition of immune checkpoints, which is one of the strategies to stimulate our immune system,” he emphasized.

He also explained that the production of immunotherapy with chemical compounds would entail lower manufacturing and synthesis costs, less complex infrastructure compared to that required for biological products and greater accessibility for patients who require prolonged treatments.

“The project we are carrying out at the IVIC is a project that is in its infancy, where the part of synthesizing and obtaining the compounds has already been carried out and there are some promising results in vitro,” he said.

He said that experiments still need to be done to be considered or scaled up to possible live or clinical trials later on.

Mazo News Team