According to a study published in the most recent issue of the journal Nature Medicine, scientists and researchers at the National Cancer Institute are working on developing a vastly different alternative to current chemotherapy by using light.
The technique involves putting together cancer-specific antibodies and a heat-sensitive fluorescent dye. By itself the dye is not toxic, but when the light (which is close to infrared) hits the dye, it raises the temperature of the dye, allowing it to burn a tiny hole in the cell membrane, causing it to die.
The technique also works thanks to the efforts of the antibodies themselves, overexpressed as they are on the surface of cancer cells. This helps the technique be a targeted treatment and prevent damage to surrounding tissue and reduce side effects.
The technique remains in pre-clinical trials, meaning it has yet to make it out of the lab and into human subjects. One obstacle is the technique's ability to kill large tumors quickly, potentially leading to dangers such as tumor lysis syndrome.
Nonetheless, the technique is extremely promising and offers hope for a future free of the sweeping effects of chemotherapy.
Source: NCI
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