India, Oct. 4 -- Swastika Paul and Abhishek Dutta began their journey as PhD researchers studying cancer stem cells and the role of exosomes in tumour progression. Their work often took them to hospital operation theatres, where they collected tumour samples amidst questions from patients' families curious about the purpose of their research. This close encounter with cancer's realities sparked a mission that would soon move beyond the lab and into real-world therapy development.

"Our PhD research was focused on relapse-causing cancer stem cells and the role of exosomes in tumour progression. For this, we'd have to go to hospitals and wait outside the OT to collect the tumour samples for our study," Swastika says.

That experience expose...