Advanced-stage cancer patients have gone through several cycles of chemotherapy, radiation, or several procedures, which all lead to many adverse effects and low efficacy. Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) scientists suggested a new approach that can potentially expand the medical approach for handling patients with malignant tumors. The idea of applying both phototherapy and chemotherapy in a manner that is alternating and targeted in the approach and estimated the therapy to be greatly effective in many experimented animal models.
This is operating optimally to remove tumors each time in most cases and increase the expected survival times. The new approach revolves around tiny particles implanted directly at the tumor site to deliver two complementary therapies: by phototherapy, or by chemotherapy. Unlike the other therapy (chemotherapy), this treatment was often installed through intravenous administration to the vein and covers every part of the body, this method has fewer side effects that come with chemotherapy because it only targets the tumor. It has been observed that both phototherapy and chemotherapy have been shown to increase longer lifespans as opposed to other therapy techniques.
In research carried out on mice, researchers successfully eradicated the tumors. This dual approach is effective in this study. This approach is particularly valuable in managing the advancement of the aggressive proliferation of tumors says principal investigator Ana Jaklenec at MIT’s Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research. Jaklenec underlined that the purpose of the technology is to offer patients who have few options either a longer life better well-being or improved life quality.
This cutting-edge therapy uses molybdenum disulfide, an inorganic compound that can directly and without loss convert laser light into heat. The particles heat when exposed to low-power near-infrared (NIR) laser and raise the tumor cells temperature to the safe level that eliminates the tumor cells. Also, the heat brings out the gradual development of the chemotherapeutic agents that have been encapsulated within the particles therefore reducing the distribution of the drugs to other parts of the body.
To form such microparticles, the team dispersed molybdenum disulfide nanosheets together with chemotherapeutic agents like violacein or doxorubicin. It was then blended with biodegradable polymer polycaprolactone and cast into a dried film to work into cubic microparticles. Once the particles are implanted into the tumor they stay there which creates multiple chances for treating it with the help of the external laser.
The scientists used machine-learning algorithms to calculate the appropriate power for the laser, the duration of irradiation, and the phototherapeutic agent concentration. Based on this, they came up with a three-minute cycle for the laser treatment. At this time, particles attain about 50°C temperature that kills tumor cells while melting the polymer matrix releasing the drug trapped within it.
According to Neelkanth Bardhan, a research scientist at Break Through Cancer in the Belcher Lab and second author of the paper, “This laser system, optimized through machine learning, allows for low-dose targeted chemotherapy by taking advantage of near-infrared light to penetrate deep into the tissue, making pulsed, on-demand photothermal therapy possible. This approach has been compared with traditional chemotherapy and indeed reduces systemic toxicity.”
To demonstrate the uptake of the microparticles in injected mice with triple-negative breast tumor cells, which are especially malignant and hard to treat, the scientists injected around 25 microparticles into each tumor site. Lastly, they did three laser treatments in total, and the treatments were conducted every three days. This approach therefore led to tumor regression in most of the treated mice; and better survival rates than the mice that received single modality therapy or were untreated.
According to another senior author of the study and a professor of biological engineering at MIT, Angela Belcher, this approach holds transformative potential: This is a turning point in less painful treatment options that can be controlled at timed intervals by light, even after only one dose of particle injection.
The polymer, which is used to fabricate microparticles, polycaprolactone, is biodegradable and is approved by the FDA for use in medical devices. This has achieved positive results in mice, the team now plans to move up to larger animal models before moving to trials in humans. They expect that this sort of dual-therapy system may be used for nearly all sorts of solid tumors including metastatic cancers.
This innovative treatment is the first step forward in cancer therapy with the precision and efficacy of phototherapy and the potency of localized chemotherapy. In case it succeeds in subsequent studies, it could dramatically change the approach to treating aggressive and late-stage cancers, providing new hope for those who have no other option.
Reference: Trafton A. Game-changing dual cancer therapy completely eradicates tumors without harsh side effects. Massachusetts Institute of Technology. 2024. Accessed from Game-Changing Dual Cancer Therapy Completely Eradicates Tumors Without Harsh Side Effects
