Nanoparticles, tiny structures, can be utilized to carry substances to parts of the body — for instance, to provide a chemotherapy drug to a tumor.
Even though such “nanomedicine” showed promise to enhance cancer therapeutics, the survival perks of clinically approved nanomedicines are often modest compared to that of conventional chemotherapy.
A new study reported in the Journal of Controlled Release denotes that nanomedicine might offer extra advantages if it is has been administered at lower and more frequent doses — known as metronomic dosing — instead of the standard maximum tolerated dose of present treatments.
Nanomedicine and metronomic therapy have been regarded as two different approaches to treat cancer. Our analysis suggests that these two approaches can be viewed using the same unified framework as strategies to enhance treatment.
Rakesh K. Jain PhD, Study Corresponding Author and Director, E.L. Steele Laboratories for Tumor Biology, Massachusetts General Hospital
Jain is also an Andrew Werk Cook Professor of Radiation Oncology at Harvard Medical School.
Jain describes that metronomic therapy might help normalize the tumor microenvironment. This implies that it helps in rectifying a few of the abnormalities that develop around tumors and safeguarding the tumor and promoting its spread.
For instance, metronomic therapy appears to enhance blood vessel function and immune activation within a tumor while tumors can transmit signals that settle normal blood flow and block immune cell responses (both of which make them hard to treat). New preclinical studies indicate that nanomedicines can result in similar variations in the tumor microenvironment.
In this study, we hypothesized that nanoparticle formulations, given the controlled release of their payload and the long blood circulation time, can trigger the same cascade of activities as metronomic therapy.
Rakesh K. Jain PhD, Study Corresponding Author and Director, E.L. Steele Laboratories for Tumor Biology, Massachusetts General Hospital
With the help of a mathematical framework and experiments performed in mice, the researchers illustrated that both methods can act as “normalization strategies” to impact the tumor microenvironment and enhance cancer treatments.
Furthermore, in mice with triple negative breast cancer or fibrosarcoma, Doxil — a nanomedicine that is approved to treat metastatic breast cancer and comprises of doxorubicin encapsulated in a lipid sphere — administered via a metronomic schedule could overcome tumor resistance that is normally seen when Doxil is provided through a standard dosing schedule.
Also, a metronomic schedule enhanced the efficacy of the combination of Doxil plus a kind of immunotherapy known as an immune checkpoint inhibitor.
Nano-immunotherapy, which combines nanomedicines with immunotherapy, has high potential to improve patient outcomes, and for this reason, understanding the mechanisms of resistance to and development of strategies to enhance nano-immunotherapy in breast and other cancer types is urgently needed. The results of this work could be a basis for the planning of future clinical studies to improve the efficacy of nano-immunotherapy regimens.
Triantafyllos Stylianopoulos PhD, Study Co-Corresponding Author and Director, Cancer Biophysics Laboratory
Triantafyllos Stylianopoulos is also an associate professor at the University of Cyprus.
The outcomes indicate that integrating nanomedicines with metronomic scheduling can result in a strong attack against hard-to-treat tumors. By acting collectively to normalize the tumor microenvironment, these two strategies provide drugs with a better chance of obtaining cancer cells and targeting them in an efficient manner.
News
GHCE Concept
From the preface of the book Global Health Care Equivalency in the Age of Nanotechnology, Nanomedicine and Artificial Intelligence, Edited by Frank Boehm: Since the publication of my first book (Nanomedical Device and Systems [...]
Novartis, Ionis drug failure spurs questions
Pelacarsen didn’t protect heart health despite lowering levels of a protein particle, “Lp(a),” in a large clinical trial — a result with important implications for cardiovascular drug research. Dive Brief: An RNA drug from [...]
New injectable treatment helps the brain rebuild after stroke
Biomedical engineers at Duke University have created an injectable biomaterial that may help the brain recover from damage left behind by an ischemic stroke. In experiments with mice, the material transformed the cavity created [...]
Scientists Discover a Hidden “Immune Organ” Inside the Skull
Researchers discovered lymph node-like immune hubs inside skull bone marrow that appear to act as rapid-response centers for the brain. For decades, the brain was thought to operate largely apart from the immune system. [...]
Engineered tRNAs and lipid nanoparticles target nonsense mutation cystic fibrosis
Researchers have developed a potential new approach for treating a form of cystic fibrosis caused by so-called nonsense mutations, combining chemically modified transfer RNAs with lipid nanoparticles designed to deliver the therapy directly to [...]
New pancreatic cancer drug carries a $39,800 monthly list price
A groundbreaking treatment for one of the most common forms of pancreatic cancer has been approved in pill form by the FDA. Revolution Medicines’ oral tablet daraxonrasib, branded as Rasonque, reduced the risk of [...]
Researchers Have Discovered a New Way To Reduce Chronic Nerve Pain
A cancer-linked protein called BRAF may help drive chronic nerve pain, and existing cancer drugs targeting it reduced pain sensitivity in preclinical models. Chronic nerve pain can persist long after an injury and often [...]
Our books now available worldwide!
Online Sellers other than Amazon, Routledge, and IOPP Indigo Global Health Care Equivalency in the Age of Nanotechnology, Nanomedicine and Artifcial Intelligence Global Health Care Equivalency In The Age Of Nanotechnology, Nanomedicine And Artificial [...]
Quantum-Enabled Regenerative Health: Reimagining Wellness, Precision Health and Longevity Medicine
Introduction Healthcare is approaching a frontier where the quantum portfolio could influence not only how disease is diagnosed and treated, but how health itself is measured, modeled, predicted and preserved. Quantum computing, quantum simulation, [...]
FDA Clears First-of-Its-Kind Nonmedication Treatment for PTSD
The FDA has cleared a system that uses brain activity data to personalize magnetic stimulation for PTSD, adding a new nonmedication treatment option. Every day in the United States, approximately 17.5 veterans die by suicide, [...]
FDA approves breakthrough drug to treat advanced pancreatic cancer
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved on Wednesday a drug that could extend the survival of those with metastatic pancreatic cancer. The drug, called daraxonrasib, will be sold under the brand name Rasonque [...]
AI Decodes a Hidden DNA Signal Linked to Disease-Causing Mutations
Machine learning identifies the likely “initiator” and enables new predictions about DNA mutations that can cause disease. Every human cell depends on tens of thousands of genes being switched on at the right time [...]
Pope Leo Urges Global Response to Congo’s Deadliest Ebola Outbreak
Pope Leo called for international action to address the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The epidemic has claimed over 2,500 lives and is the nation's largest recorded outbreak. The Pope emphasized [...]
Is there a summer COVID-19 surge this year? Yep, it’s ramping up again
Hantavirus. Ebola. West Nile. Measles. And, of course, cyclospora — that stomach parasite making people miserable across the country. Americans have plenty to worry about this summer. But remember COVID-19? It may not be [...]
Natural Compound in Broccoli Could Help Treat a Rare, Incurable Neurological Disease
Swinburne researchers have discovered how broccoli could help treat an extremely rare and incurable disease that affects only about 200 Australians. A naturally occurring compound in broccoli is being investigated as a possible treatment [...]
Antibody recycling, FcRn and the next generation of biologics
FcRn plays a central role in regulating the half-life of IgG antibodies and albumin, making it a critical target in both antibody engineering and autoimmune disease therapy. This article explores the biology of FcRn, [...]
