TEHRAN – An Iranian knowledge-based company has managed to produce a drug that is used for the treatment of breast and stomach cancers.

‘AryoTrust’ with the generic name ‘Trastuzumab’ costs about one-seventh of foreign products, IRIB reported.

Producing biomedicines widely used for hard-to-treat illnesses, and indigenizing the technology for producing drugs to meet the needs of both national and international markets are among the major priorities of the company.

‘AryoTrust’ is one of the products that is being made domestically thanks to the efforts of this knowledge-based company. It has made the country practically self-sufficient in this regard.

It is a recombinant DNA-derived humanized monoclonal antibody that selectively targets the extracellular domain of the human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 protein (HER2).

These receptors normally reside on the normal cell surfaces leading to cellular growth and proliferation. Over-expression of HER2 is observed in primary breast and advanced gastric cancer cells.

AryoTrust binds to HER2, prevents its activity, and leads to the death of cancer cells.

It is produced in the form of lyophilized powder in two dosages of 150 mg and 440 mg which is administered as intravenous infusion after dilution.

Currently, AryoTrust is in phase four of clinical trials called post-marketing surveillance trial which looks for safety and adverse effects in unscreened patients over a long period of time.

Patients’ information, which is collected from healthcare providers, is evaluated and analyzed. Finally, an official report is submitted to foreign regulatory bodies, which will facilitate obtaining a license to export drugs. Indonesia, Malaysia, Lebanon, and African countries are among the export destinations of the company.

Recent achievements in cancer treatment

On January 20, the Iran University of Medical Sciences (IUMS) announced the development of a system based on artificial intelligence (AI) that can detect breast cancer with 94 percent accuracy, IRNA reported.

In Iran, breast cancer is the second-leading cause of death in women as around 30 percent of patients die each year, nearly as much as the world average.

Earlier detection of cancer increases the chance of successful treatment and survival.

Also, an Iranian knowledge-based company announced readiness to meet the needs of regional countries as well as North Africa for the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine.

HPV is known to cause cervical cancer in women.

The product has been manufactured at a much lower price, 75 percent cheaper, compared to foreign samples.

Producing the HPV vaccine needs one of the most complicated technologies in the world, and Iran has been able to produce the vaccine domestically.

Once the vaccine proved its safety and effectiveness in increasing the antibody titer, it obtained the Food and Drug Organization’s approval to enter the market in 2020.

In September 2023, an Iranian knowledge-based company succeeded in producing ‘ibrutinib’ which is used to treat various blood cancers, making the country the third producer of the medication in the world.

Now Iran, India, and China are the only three countries in the world that have the high-tech knowledge to produce ibrutinib and necessary raw material, IRNA reported.

Ibrutinib is a type of targeted therapy called a kinase inhibitor. A kinase is an enzyme that promotes cell growth. There are many types of kinases, which control different phases of cell growth.

This medication interferes with the function of Bruton's tyrosine kinase (BTK), which is found in excess on cancerous B cells. By interfering with BTK, ibrutinib interferes with the growth of the cancerous B cells.

Ibrutinib is highly effective in the treatment of chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), mantle cell lymphoma, and Waldenstrom’s macroglobulinemia.

The biggest advantage of this drug is its end price. A dose of 420 grams of medicine, which is used to produce 28 of this medicine, costs nearly 6,500 euros.

The raw material production for manufacturing this drug in the country is very affordable in terms of strategy, price, and quality.

In August 2023, a group of researchers, led by an Iranian scientist,  successfully analyzed the chemical composition of individual human cells.

This method can help with an earlier detection of cancer and a more efficient treatment, according to Mehr News Agency.

The breakthrough, which is considered a milestone in the field of analytical chemistry, enables single-cell biopsies in laboratories. During the research, mass spectrometry and artificial intelligence were used to first measure the chemical molecules or metabolites of a human cell with high precision, and then extract the chemical patterns of different cells from complex spectral data. AI played a significant role during several steps of the research.

The new scientific advancement essentially enables the identification of anti-tumor immune cells as well as tumor enhancers.

Also, researchers were able to measure the chemical content of an immune cell called macrophage and accurately differentiate between tumor-suppressing or tumor-enhancing macrophages. This is the first time that metabolite measurement, or metabolomics, has been performed on an immune cell.

Cancer therapy

The latest national cancer census shows that the number of new cancer cases in Iran is expected to increase to 160,000 by the Iranian calendar year 1404 (March 2025-March 2026), indicating an increase of 43 percent.

The first 10 most common cancers in Iran are breast, prostate, colon, stomach, lung, bladder, thyroid, uterus, brain, and spine cancers.

The most common cancers of Iranian women include breast, colon, thyroid, stomach, uterine, leukemia, ovary, brain and spine, lungs and esophagus.

Around 250,000 Iranians are now living with cancer. Half of cancers can be almost treated and the rest can be avoided.

On March 17, A cancer treatment center, which is said to be the most advanced of its kind in the region, was officially inaugurated by President Ebrahim Raisi.

Some 12 trillion rials (about $24 million) has been spent on building the center which is specialized for diagnosing and treating stage 3 cancers.

Stage 3 cancer is considered advanced. In this stage, the tumor may have grown to a specific size, cancer may consist of multiple tumors, and/or cancer may have spread to adjacent lymph nodes, organs, or tissue.

In some cases, stage 3 cancers may be considered metastatic cancers, meaning they may have spread beyond their organ of origin.

Many stage 3 cancers have multiple subcategories, usually designated as stages 3A, 3B, and 3C. These subcategories are often determined by the size of the tumors, whether multiple tumors are present, and the degree to which cancer has spread locally.

For the first time in West Asia, some ultra-modern devices such as linear accelerator, CyberKnife, tomotherapy, and CT simulator have been used in this cancer treatment center.

The CyberKnife system is a non-invasive, robotic delivery system for radiation therapy that treats some cancerous and noncancerous tumors and other conditions.

Tomotherapy is a type of therapy in which radiation is aimed at a tumor from many different directions.

The Ministry of Health has launched a plan aimed at preventing the three most common cancers among women, namely breast, colorectal, and cervical cancers, Ali Qanbari-Motlaq, a health ministry official, said in February.

MT/MG