UNIST researchers are looking to the bloodstream for a new way to intervene in cancer metastasis. Their approach would filter out factors that help colorectal cancer spread before returning purified blood to the patient.

Led by Professor Joo Hun Kang of the Department of Biomedical Engineering at UNIST, the group has been selected for the Korean ARPA-H Project to develop the approach. Through the project, the group will receive approximately KRW 8 billion in government funding over four and a half years, with Professors Jinmyoung Joo and Semin Lee participating in the research.

The approach addresses a major challenge in colorectal cancer treatment. Once cancer spreads to other organs, treatment becomes considerably more difficult and survival declines sharply. Existing therapies largely focus on removing the primary tumor or attacking cancer cells that have already spread. The group is investigating whether the bloodstream itself can provide another point of intervention.

The proposed system would circulate a patient's blood outside the body and selectively remove factors and molecular signals that promote metastasis. The purified blood would then be returned to the patient. The aim is to disrupt the conditions that help cancer cells establish themselves in other organs, complementing treatments that target tumors directly.

The technology builds on blood purification methods Professor Kang's group has been developing for sepsis. Designed to selectively remove pathogens and inflammatory substances from circulating blood, the approach has demonstrated efficacy in preclinical large-animal models of sepsis. The new project will adapt the underlying technology to target factors associated with cancer metastasis.

The researchers will initially focus on colorectal cancer patients at high risk of recurrence or metastasis after surgery. They will also examine whether combining blood purification with conventional cancer treatment can suppress new metastases and limit further growth of tumors that have already spread.

Ultimately, the team aims to develop a blood purification medical device that could be applied to other metastatic cancers and advance the technology toward an exploratory clinical study.

The project brings together academic, clinical, and industry partners in cancer research and medical-device development. Yonsei University College of Medicine and Seoul National University Bundang Hospital (SNUBH) will investigate mechanisms of cancer metastasis and clinical applications. ArtBlood Inc. and Cebika Inc. will support production of the blood purification device, while EverTri Inc. will contribute to clinical study planning and regulatory approval. The Korea Testing & Research Institute (KTR) will support safety and performance evaluation.

“The bloodstream is not only a route through which cancer cells travel; it also carries factors that can promote metastasis,” Professor Kang said. “By purifying the blood, we aim to disrupt that process and establish a new therapeutic approach to cancer metastasis.”

“Our first goal is to demonstrate the approach in colorectal cancer and then expand it to other metastatic cancers,” he added. “Ultimately, we aim to develop a blood purification device that can move beyond the laboratory and toward clinical application.”