Researchers are reporting that they have some new technology that they can use to reduce side effects while increasing the effectiveness of cancer treatments. They are attempting to deliver the cancer drugs (presumably chemotherapy drugs) directly to tumors, while not damaging normal tissue. Most traditional chemotherapy drugs are cytotoxic (damaging to normal cells as well as tumor cells).
One of the technologies that is to be used is that of nanoparticles. They are to be used to create carbon nanotubes (CNT’s) to deliver the drugs directly to the tumor. A CNT is very small, and would be used to deliver high concentrations of chemotherapeutic drugs into cancer cells, while avoiding exposure to normal cells. This would also allow the drug to be inside the tumor cells for a longer period of time than normal. continue reading…
