The study shows that the chemotherapy technique that uses magnetic nanoparticles to heat cancer cells above 104 ° F while administering drugs
- Cancer cells are vulnerable to heat and can be targeted with magnetic particles
- They attach to tumor cells and a magnetic field causes them to heat up
- This increases their susceptibility to chemochemicals transported by nanoparticles
Chemotherapy can be up to 34% more effective thanks to a new technique that combines treatment with magnetic particles that fry cancer cells.
Researchers at University College London found that the combination of heat drugs and chemotherapy makes the process more effective.
Small magnetic nanoparticles bind to cancer cells in a tumor and also carry the chemotherapy drug.
When doctors apply a harmless magnetic field to the area outside the body, it activates the magnetic properties of the nanoparticles and causes them to heat up, heating up the trapped cancer cells.
Research reveals that this damages the tumor and makes it more vulnerable to pre-existing drugs.
Chemotherapy is up to 34% more effective thanks to a new technique that combines treatment with magnetic particles that boil cancer cells (stock photo)
The research so far has only been tested in one laboratory, but researchers say the first findings are significant.
This new technique treated human breast cancer cells, glioblastoma cells (brain cancer) and mouse prostate cancer cells, in a test tube.
Doxorubicin, a commonly used chemical drug, was applied to magnetic nanoparticles.
Small magnetic nanoparticles carry the chemotherapy drug and also bind to cancer cells in a tumor. When doctors apply a harmless magnetic field to the area outside the body, the nanoparticles begin to heat up by heating the cancer cells.
The results, which have been reviewed and published in the Journal of Materials Chemistry B, show promising results for the experimental method.
Heat and doxorubicin together killed 98% of brain cancer cells after 48 hours. The drug only killed 73% of the cells when applied without heat.
For breast cancer cells, the combination eliminated 89% of the cancer, which is only reduced to 77% for the drug alone.
Professor Nguyen TK Thanh, lead author, said: “Our study shows the enormous potential of combining chemotherapy with heat treatment administered using magnetic nanoparticles.
“Although this combination of therapy is already approved for the treatment of fast-growing glioblastomas, our results suggest that it can be more widely used as an anticancer therapy.
“This therapy can also reduce the side effects of chemotherapy, making sure it targets cancer cells more than health. It needs to be explored in other preclinical trials.”