Ben Woodington on Coherence Bio's Revolutionary Cancer Reprogramming Approach

In this episode of the Neural Implant Podcast, we sit down with Ben Woodington, co-founder of Coherence Bio, a groundbreaking medical technology company pioneering a new frontier in cancer treatment. By integrating neurotechnology, neurobiology, and machine learning, Coherence is building a platform that doesn't just fight cancer—it manages it in real time.

Ben shares how Coherence is moving beyond the traditional "cut, burn, poison" model of oncology, and instead focusing on precision neuromodulation to monitor and control cancer progression—offering hope for 24/7 adaptive treatment with fewer side effects and better quality of life. Their platform, SOMA, is the first in a suite of technologies aimed at achieving this ambitious goal.

We also explore the emerging field of cancer neuroscience, the role of BCIs and digital neural interfaces in oncology, and how Coherence's research is predicting brain metastasis, decoding neural signatures of gliomas, and applying electrotherapy to fight tumors.

This episode is sponsored by Black Swan IP – patent strategy and legal support for neurotech innovators. Learn more at www.blackswan-ip.com/

Top 3 Takeaways:

• Coherence is targeting glioblastoma as its first application due to its urgent unmet clinical need—patients face a median survival of just 14 months, and the standard of care hasn’t evolved in over two decades. Despite the broader applicability of their technology across brain cancers, focusing on this aggressive, treatment-resistant form gives them a high-impact entry point to demonstrate the value of real-time, adaptive neuromodulation.
• Coherence is exploring two groundbreaking mechanisms for treating brain cancer: directly stimulating cancer cells to inhibit division, and disrupting the neural-cancer feedback loop that drives tumor growth. Inspired by work from Stanford’s Michelle Monje lab, they aim to block the synaptic connections between neurons and tumor cells—cutting off the electrical signals and neurotrophic support that fuel cancer proliferation.
• Implants will be placed during patients’ scheduled tumor resection surgeries, minimizing additional intervention. Rather than performing separate procedures, the team collaborates with surgeons during planned tumor debulking to implant devices, enabling safety and neural recording studies without altering standard care pathways.

0:45 Do you want to introduce yourself better than I just did?

2:00 Is that what OptoBio was doing as well?

3:15 What is the mechanism of action for curing cancer?

6:00 How are you treating the cancer?

8:15 Is this a localized treatment around the implanted area only?

17:15 Sponsorship by blackswan-ip 

11:15 How are you measuring the signal of the cancer?

12:00 What level of development are you guys at?

14:00 How are clinical trials approval different for terminal patients?

15:45 How do you deal with the sense of urgency to get this technology out?

18:30 What would you want to see in the Neural Implant Community?

23:15 Is there anything we didn't talk about that you wanted to mention?