Brennan Coulter
Jul 16, 2012

"Paradigm-changing" Cancer Therapy

Scientists from Yale University have created what they call, “a paradigm-changing immunotherapeutic method for cancer therapy.” The Yale team’s new method for attacking cancer comes in form of a nanogel, made up of  biodegradable nanoparticles, that delivers and releases two very different therapeutic agents to tumor sites. The first, a large protein called a cytokine stimulates and intensifies the body’s natural immune response. The second, a small-molecule inhibitor, interferes with the tumor’s ability to suppress the immune response. Researchers report that in tests on mice, when administered intravenously and in separate experiments directly into the tumors, the double-loaded particle significantly delayed tumor growth and increased subject survival. The Food and Drug Administration has already approved all of the components in the gel, which could expedite future experiments using the gel with other ingredients and human trials.