Archive · 8 Aug 2026
Watching cancer cells live could transform drug discovery
Scientists often study cells only after they have been dyed, frozen, or broken apart, when the cells are no longer living.
A new platform lets researchers watch living cells continuously, without harming them.
By watching cells stay alive, scientists can see how medicines change cells in real time.
This could help find new cancer medicines faster, because most cancer drug candidates fail before they reach patients.
Experts say many of those failures happen because laboratory models don't show how living cells really behave.
The same technology could also help study brain diseases, rare diseases, the immune system, and healing.
In India, about 1.4 million new cancer cases were estimated in 2022, so better research tools are needed.
Researchers hope that watching living cells will reveal new insights that were impossible to see before.
A platform that lets researchers observe living cells continuously could transform drug discovery, cancer research, and precision medicine, experts said.
Dr. Shyam Aggarwal of Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, New Delhi, said real-time observation could fast-track detection of subtle biochemical changes in preclinical research.
Parmita Mishra, Founder and CEO of San Francisco-based Precigenetics, said watching living cells instead of relying on biological 'autopsies' can reveal insights previously impossible to observe.
Unlike conventional laboratory techniques that require staining, fixing, or breaking cells apart, the platform monitors living biology continuously.
India reported an estimated 1.4 million new cancer cases in 2022 per IARC data, and ICMR projects the cancer burden will keep rising over the coming decade.
- Who
- Experts including Dr. Shyam Aggarwal, Chairperson of the Department of Medical Oncology at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, New Delhi, and Parmita Mishra, Founder and CEO of San Francisco-based Precigenetics.
- What
- A platform enabling continuous real-time observation of living cells was highlighted as potentially transformative for drug discovery, cancer research, and precision medicine.
- When
- The experts' remarks were reported on a Saturday; no specific date was given in the article.
- Where
- New Delhi, India (where experts spoke), and San Francisco, USA (where Precigenetics is based).
- Why
- Because most oncology drug candidates fail in clinical development, partly due to laboratory models that cannot capture the complexity and dynamic behaviour of living cells.
- Platform
- Real-time living cell observation platform run by Precigenetics
- Company HQ
- San Francisco, USA
- Key advocates
- Dr. Shyam Aggarwal (Sir Ganga Ram Hospital) and Parmita Mishra (Precigenetics CEO)
- Potential applications
- Cancer research, precision medicine, immunology, neuroscience, rare diseases, regenerative medicine
- India cancer cases (2022)
- Estimated 1.4 million new cases (IARC data)
- Cancer burden projection
- ICMR projects India's cancer burden will rise over the coming decade
- Current model limitation
- Most oncology drug candidates fail in clinical development; lab models rely on end-point measurements and can miss living cells' dynamic behaviour