Organoid technology now being used at Hadassah

JoyceToub, Collier/LeeHadassah President

In June, I shared some of the medical programs that were initiated by Hadassah Hospital. We continue to spread healing and hope through breakthroughs, while our advocacy programs improve the lives of all people.

Several years ago, Professor Eyal Mishani, Director of Hadassah Medical Organization’s Research Fund and head of the Research and Development Innovation Division, started the work to bring organoid technology to Hadassah, where its potential seemed very promising.

From this technology, first developed in the Netherlands in 2009, doctors at Hadassah’s Organoid Center can now take biopsies from patients and grow their tissues in a lab so that the cells multiply, connect to each other and self-organize into three dimensional structures, eventually mimicking the features of the tissue in the patient’s body.

In 2021, Hadassah established a Bio Bank to store the samples and make them available to researchers in Israel and around the world. They’ve become an essential tool for industry to determine how various drugs and treatments will affect the tissues — and the individual patient.

This personalized approach saves the patient from grueling tests and drugs that may have no effect on their disease. It also reduces the time between the onset of illness and potential life-saving treatments. The treatment is already benefiting some cancer patients and some patients with cystic fibrosis, saving precious time for those who cannot afford the time required for traditional trial-and-error approaches. It will also significantly reduce the need to use animals as preclinical models.

Looking ahead, there is a good chance that these doctors will be able to transplant the patient’s derived organoids to restore the function of a diseased organ.

When you donate to Hadassah, it has a powerful effect. You make broken lives whole. You keep crucial medical research moving forward. You empower women to become advocates and activists who transform our world. You put Jewish values into action.

Please join us for these “Expanding Horizons” events … and expand your horizons on:

July 13, noon – Summer Fun, a book swap and lunch with hostess Leda Lubin Oct. 18, 10:30 a.m. – “Whatever Happened to the Great American Railroad?” presented by Jeffrey Margolis

Looking forward to seeing you soon!