삼성서울병원

Refractory cancer is defined as cancer that cannot be treated with regular treatments, which leads to very short survival time (around 6 months) for patients. A large portion of medical costs from cancer patients are caused by refractory cancer, but targeted therapy is scarce. Therefore the development of refractory cancer treatments play a vitally important role not only in medical advancement but also in social and economic benefit.

Established in 2009, the institute introduced the Avatar Platform, an innovative refractory cancer translational research program based on the AVATAR Mouse® and AVATASCAN® systems. Since then, the center has been successfully transfer the global technology by exporting the Avatar Platform and training expertise. The center also aims to trigger a virtuous cycle by encouraging collaborative research among industry-academy-institute partners. By maintaining an open line of communication with pharmaceutical companies and fundamental clinical researchers, the institute aims to realize personalized treatment for refractory cancer patients by building a new medication development platform in Korea, with the aim of accelerating treatment and clinical approaches, and creating differentiated and innovative translational research.