The sooner a cancer is detected, the greater the chances of effective treatment. A team of scientists from different specialties at the University of Missouri-Colombia is investigating the application of nanoparticles to detect and treat cancer at the molecular level. Their main motivation is the early detection of all cancers and as one of the scientists involved in research, early results are very promising.
They are manufactured custom-made nanoparticles for medical applications through a process patented by the University. The research focuses on the use of nanoparticles to detect cancer, even in the pre-cancer through medical imaging techniques.
The idea that doctors would administer millions of nanoparticles programmed to find cancerous tumors. Once the nanoparticles localize the tumor, doctors used X-rays to see it even if they consist of only a single cancer cell, which is now impossible. With current technology, to see the cancer tumor has to be a set of hundreds of cells in a more advanced stage.
In addition, this team of scientists believes that nanoparticles also enhance the effectiveness of current cancer treatments. The soft tissues have limited capacity to absorb the radiation given to treat cancer. If you increase the effective density of the tumor with metallic nanoparticles, a higher dose of radiation reaches the tumor without damaging normal tissue and minimizing side effects.
Authors bio is coming up shortly.