Could Nano Drugs Be a New Alternative Cancer Treatment?

Nano DrugsTreatments against cancerous tumors have always been a dangerous and complicated process. These cancer cells can grow and spread rapidly. In addition, the current available treatments are determined by whether or not the patient can endure the treatment process, and also the location of the tumor. Scientists are now exploring Nano drugs.

With the options of chemo or radiation therapy, these treatments can lead to additional complications, as well as a potential development of new cancer cells. But doctors have discovered a new form of tumor treatments, using anticancer drugs which can either successfully fight the cancer, or harm healthy tissue.

Anti-cancer or tumor treatments have a known variety of useful methods. However, it requires a thorough assessment of the cancer and whether or not these methods will effectively work. On top of that, some of the treatments can slow down cell reproduction, or even kill them. This leads to side effects like, hair loss, fatigue, and nausea and vomiting. Here are some of the common treatments:

Radiation can be the use of high doses of radiation, an internal or external beam. The internal beam is inserted in the body in either solid of liquid form, with the intent to locate the location of the cancer. The external beam is aimed specifically where the cancer is located using radiation.

Chemotherapy is the use of drugs, used to kill or slow down the production of cancer cells. Chemotherapy is the most common treatment and it is given according to the type of cancer, given it is anti-cancer drug.

Surgery is simply having the cancer removed from the body directly, which works even better when the tumors are in one spot. This may also be combined with other cancer treatments for further assurance.

Nano Drugs For Cancer

A new method to sending the drugs directly to cancer cells was discovered by researchers at Washington State University, Nano drugs.

Using nanotherapeutic particles so small, they were attached to white blood cells fighting infection. The method was tested on mice that each carried a tumor. They were then injected with gold nanoparticles that produced enough heat to kill tumor cells when exposed to light.

Dr. Zhenjia Wang, assistant professor of pharmaceutical science, was highly confident in the discovery, stating it was a “new approach to delivering therapeutics into tumors”. He also claimed that they will be implemented into anti-cancer drugs increasing the proficiency of cancer therapies.