Client
Key Areas
Awards
Translating innovation into impact
The Challenge
Staying ahead of the evolving treatment landscape requires a fundamental shift is required in how medicines are administered to patients. This means finding new ways that are effective, atraumatic, and physiologically beneficial routes to bring therapies to market.
Founded in 2018, TriSalus Life Sciences (TriSalus) has been focused on its innovative and disruptive approach to treating liver and pancreatic tumors. TriSalus’ proprietary delivery method—Pressure-Enabled Drug DeliveryTM (PEDDTM)—modulates pressure and flow within blood vessels to improve therapy uptake and tumor response in ways traditional approaches cannot. TriNav® Infusion System, their novel drug delivery device, received FDA clearance in 2018 and has been validated in numerous peer-reviewed studies. Since its acquisition in 2020, TriSalus has advanced the development of SD-101, a toll-like receptor 9 (TLR9) agonist that targets myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs). In combination with checkpoint inhibitors, TriSalus’ focus is to reprogram the dominant immunosuppressive cell population in the liver and pancreatic tumors. Current research demonstrates that MDSCs drive liver immunosuppression in the tumor and suppressive immune cells in normal liver tissue. TriSalus’ innovative platform approach allows treatment of immune dysfunction in solid tumors and throughout liver tissue by leveraging multiple mechanisms of action that can work together to overcome inherent immune suppression.
TriSalus’ mission is to bring hope to patients and overcome existing challenges of treating those patients with liver metastases and pancreatic solid tumors. They are accomplishing this by overcoming intratumoral pressure (ITP) and immunosuppression, two significant barriers that can limit delivery and efficacy.
- Overcoming ITP: PEDDTM takes full advantage of all the physiological effects available to normal blood flow. Specifically, the device physically changes the vascular environment and promotes the uptake of drugs and therapeutics, providing accurate placement with improved levels of control. The greatest tumor interstitial fluid pressure (TIFP) is the hypoxic zone, and PEDDTM technology is overcoming the pressure, thus infusing deep into the hypoxic zone every time while protecting nearby healthy tissue. This approach includes the ability to deliver/perfuse beads, biologics (e.g., small molecules, antibodies), cell therapy, and gene therapy.
- Overcoming immunosuppression: Once delivered into the local vasculature of solid tumors, SD-101 can reprogram or eliminate MDSCs throughout the tumor mass (peripheral and deep) and help overcome immunosuppression.
The Outcome
TriSalus sought Cognition at a pivotal point to tell the complexity of its story and to connect with a diverse audience in a way that was accessible, relatable, and understandable. A key objective was to translate innovation into impact and value while articulating the pathology, the science, and the technology with vivid clarity in static and motion-based solutions. Cognition tackled the challenge of visualizing Trisalus’ complex science through an array of branded visuals, enabling Trisalus to more
easily educate a variety of audiences, deepen investor engagements, and increase awareness of their novel approach.Our deliverables have included a series of custom 3D medical illustrations and 3D animation modules, a sonic identity, corporate presentations and PowerPoint theme development, social media support, and numerous visualizations extending to brand identity and a full corporate website refresh.
The Process
The scientific vision was reimagined from the ground up, developing high-quality static visual solutions with the goal of full-length animations in mind. Deconstructing the science into its essential components allowed us to layer in the details to build precise narratives that clearly articulate the core messages behind TriSalus’ pharmaceutical and medical devices. Each static visual laid the groundwork for further science storytelling through motion to elevate their science to a new level of understanding. We went on to visualize in motion medical devices, therapeutic mechanisms of action (MOAs), solid tumor growth and development, and vascular changes with treatment at the gross, cellular, and subcellular levels.
The animations take the viewer on a journey of their technology, starting with an overview of the liver anatomy, vasculature, cellular landscape, and effects on the immune system. The story then moves on to SD-101’s MOA and how its signaling cascade eliminates or reprograms MDSCs, thereby promoting the immune system’s responsiveness. The remaining chapters cover the tumor microenvironment, drug infusion approaches, and a summary of treating immune dysfunction in the liver. We followed up this series of animations with two additional chapters to highlight the supporting clinical data and patient outcomes associated with using their technology. Vibrant, high-quality visuals and engaging motion graphics are meant to inspire hope in the audience.
Ultimately, we developed an informational campaign that could be utilized across multiple channels, creating a consistent brand identity for investor relations and corporate communications, educating healthcare professionals, and connecting with prospective patients. Constantly striving to innovate and out-do-ourselves on each phase of the project, we took the viewer on a unique journey to visually explain the science behind TriSalus’ medical devices.
A number of assets from the illustrations and animations have been incorporated into TriSalus’ corporate website as well as looping clips, video banners, animation stills, and custom illustrations. These have also been used in a variety of presentations and marketing materials creating a consistent brand identity. The videos are embedded on the platform page of the TriSalus website and are also featured on their YouTube channel.
In addition, the animations and illustrations have been used to enhance TriSalus’ social media activity and allow viewers to learn more about what TriSalus does and the science behind their therapies.
"Thank you to you and the entire Cognition team for all your efforts in helping us translate our science. You all are incredibly talented, and we would not have arrived here without you and your team!"
-Mary Szela, President & CEO of TriSalus
