PROTECTING YOUR PETS AND HELPING DETECT CANCER IN PEOPLE
HT Vista is an innovative device that detects and diagnoses cancer in pets painlessly, non-invasively and early. It is also a technology currently in advanced clinical trials for diagnosing cancer in people
One in four dogs will develop a tumor in its lifetime. While skin and subcutaneous tissue masses are all too common in canines, most are curable when diagnosed early while they are still small. Until recently, diagnostic methods were invasive. They inserted a needle into the suspicious lump, aspirated tissue cells and sent them to a lab — uncomfortable for the dog and with a nerve-racking wait for results.
Now, however, there is a new medical imaging modality that identifies malignancies and addresses them, safely, accurately and fast. Known as heat diffusion imaging (HDI), it measures thermal signals in biological tissues.
“The HDI scan translates heat scattering signals into an image that enables early detection of cancers,” says
, which she co-founded with its chair, entrepreneur Gideon Barak, seven years ago. “The procedure is non-invasive and performed in real time at the point of treatment in the clinic or in the operating room.”
HT BioImaging is an Israeli company whose new approach to detecting cancer early in human beings is currently in clinical trials. Two years ago, it established HTVet as a subsidiary for early cancer detection in animals.
“Cancers are as common in dogs as in people,” explains oncology veterinarian Dr. Gillian Dank, a long-time lecturer at the Hebrew University’s Koret School of Veterinary Medicine and today HTVet’s principal researcher. “They are exposed to the same risk factors and same environments as we are, so it’s important to monitor our animals. At the same time, the effectiveness of our technology in diagnosing dogs can teach us about its application in humans.”
Understanding Thermal Diffusion in Tissues and its Classification
Toledano set up the parent company HT BioImaging in 2015 after her father died of lung cancer. He was only 56, but his illness was discovered late, some five years after it began invading his body. The HT in the company name are his initials — Herzl Toledano.
“I brooded over why his cancer wasn’t discovered until it reached stage 4, even though my father had been tested,” says Toledano. “In my grief, I found myself learning about the disease and its processes, about what causes tumors, how they develop and what drives their growth. I came to understand it involves a mechanism related to thermal diffusion, which was not fully understood. So I continued to investigate…”
Coming from an academic background, Toledano set up an infrastructure to explore thermal diffusion technology, which measures heat waves and other physical properties to read the spread of heat in tissue, and thus distinguish the healthy from the malignant. With its development well underway and some 150 people with cancers of the head, neck and abdominal cavity sampled, Toledano and Barak established HTVet to develop the same technology for animals.
“With HTVet, we discovered a huge need, a large market and a simpler regulatory process, allowing us to save dogs almost immediately,” she says. “We have a global patent, not only for Israel but also for the United States, Europe, China, Japan, Korea, Australia, Canada and more, generating feedback which promotes cancer detection research in human beings as well.”
How does your Product Help Vets?
“HT Vista allows the veterinarian to rule out skin cancers and subcutaneous tumors in minutes, painlessly and noninvasively, and without waiting 10 agonizing days for lab results,” says Toledano. “If there’s concern about a tumor or a worrying finding during a routine examination, the vet simply places our device on the mass, pushes a button and obtains an immediate and 98 percent accurate reading. Our technology is unique. Every other method uses a needle to aspirate a tissue sample, and a days-long wait for results, which discourages many dog owners, reducing early detection.”
As of now, HT Vista is only for dogs, but its development for use in cats is well underway, and Toledano believes that it can ultimately be extended to all animals.
What does the Product Offer to today’s Animal Medical Treatment Industry?
“There’s a significant shortage of vets worldwide, and those in practice consequently have limited time,” says Toledano. “With more and more pet owners worldwide, this strain is increasing to the point that it impinges on optimal attention and care. Our device is convenient, simple, efficient and easy to use, taking it to the frontline of tumor diagnosis in the veterinary clinic.”
“Our heat diffusion imaging brings significant change to an industry that’s not always open to innovation,” says Dank. “Veterinary equipment is not always advanced — and while no technology can replace the veterinarian, the HT Vista system allows vets to understand what they see, enabling them to make informed decisions, based on accurate information. Whether used during routine examination in the clinic or during open surgery, the device accurately reads the tumor, thereby allowing real-time judgements — such as how much tissue to cut away and the most correct and appropriate way to treat.”
Closing the Circle and Saving Lives
Some 2,500 tissue samples have been taken from dogs to date, say Toledano and Dank. “This not only symbolizes progress in the veterinary field, but also provides essential data, supports the modality and can strengthen the technology — for human beings as well as for dogs,” says Dank. “It’s important that doing this simple and life-saving early detection test becomes automatic for vets and pet owners.”
“Sadly, I can’t turn back time to help my father, but I’ve no doubt that he’d be proud of what I’m doing,” says Toledano. “I run a company that is developing a technology that will potentially save the lives of hundreds of thousands of people and animals.”
Like Toledano, the motivation of HT Vista’s team to drive real change is high. “Our human capital has been carefully chosen,” she says. “Every one of our 30 employees understands the importance of what we’re doing, and their commitment to the work is total. They live and breathe it! I’m so proud of these 30 special people, who bring new ideas every day, helping advance our work so that it meets our vital future goals.”
in collaboration with HTVet
