Scientists developing implant to cure cancer in just 60 days

health

by Brooke Kato

There will be an app for that.

A cure for cancer may be on the horizon, according to a team of Rice University scientists who received $45 million in funding for a new implant-based treatment system that could reduce cancer mortality by 50%. It could be as easy as a few taps on your phone.

Funding from the Health Advanced Research Projects Agency will be used to develop a ‘sense-and-response implant technology’ aimed at improving the outcomes of immunotherapy treatments for cancers that are normally difficult to treat. .

“Instead of tying patients to hospital beds, IV bags, and external monitors, we use minimally invasive surgery to implant small devices that continuously monitor the cancer and adjust the dose of immunotherapy in real time.” says Rice bioengineer Omid Beise. Principal Investigator of the Project; stated in a statement.

Similar to diabetes treatment with insulin pumps, the 3-inch implant, or “hybrid advanced molecular manufacturing control device” (HAMMR), delivers immunotherapy drugs to patients in a “closed-loop” system. The researchers say the rechargeable device will communicate wirelessly “potentially with a smartphone.” told KHOU 11.

Researchers hope the implant will only be needed for short-term use and could eradicate cancer in as little as 60 days.

“Cancer cells are continually evolving and adapting to treatment. However, currently available diagnostic tools such as radiology, blood tests, and biopsies are extremely rare and limited tools for understanding this dynamic process. “We provide a snapshot of the current state of the disease,” said Dr. Amir Jazaeli, co-principal investigator and professor of gynecologic oncology at the University of Texas MD Anderson. The cancer center said in a statement:

“As a result, today’s treatments treat cancer as if it were a static disease.”

Instead, the company’s technology, which acts as both a cancer monitoring and drug management system, “provides real-time data from the tumor environment, thereby guiding new, more effective and tumor-informed treatments.” “and thus speed up the treatment process.” .

“This technology is broadly applicable to peritoneal cancers that affect the pancreas, liver, lungs, and other organs,” Veiseh said.

The research team is comprised of experts from a variety of fields across 20 laboratories in seven states, with the project name THOR, which stands for “Targeted Hybrid Oncology Therapy Regulation.”

The first clinical trial will investigate the effectiveness of the implant for recurrent ovarian cancer. They hope to start human trials within five years.

Last year, Veiseh’s research team already demonstrated its effectiveness. “Drug Factory” Technology Late-stage ovarian and colorectal cancers were eradicated in mice with bead-like implants within six days.

Now they can “build that experience” in clinical trials, and HAMMR is “the next iteration of that approach,” Weisse said.