Edmonton's General Intermediates of Canada Inc. (GIC) has received conditional funding from the National Research Council of Canada Industrial Research Assistance Program (NRC IRAP) related to their discovery of a new immuno-oncology compound that could play a role in the fight against cancer.

The company is currently conducting studies on a family of compounds targeted towards the Adenosine 2a receptor. In tumors, adenosine stops T-cells from destroying cancer cells. It is felt that by blocking A2a receptors, the anti-cancer response of T-cells will improve and trigger the body's immune system to fight the tumour.

GIC's work on A2a follows on the heels of another highly successful NRC IRAP project they did which concluded in 2016. That project was related to providing a starting material for a new cancer drug under development by a large, multi-national pharmaceutical company.