Light-Based Nanotechnology Enables More Precise Cancer Treatment
Researchers at NYU Abu Dhabi have developed a new light-based nanotechnology that could improve how certain cancers are detected and treated, offering a more precise and potentially less harmful alternative to chemotherapy, radiation, and surgery.
The study advances photothermal therapy, a treatment approach that uses light to generate heat inside tumors and destroy cancer cells. The NYU Abu Dhabi team designed tiny, biocompatible and biodegradable nanoparticles that carry a dye activated by near-infrared light. When exposed to this light, the particles heat up damaging tumor tissue while minimizing harm to healthy cells. Near-infrared light was chosen specifically as it penetrates the body to greater depth than visible light, thereby enabling treatment of tumors that are not close to the surface.
A key challenge in photothermal therapy is keeping the light-responsive material stable in the body and efficiently delivering it to tumors. Many existing photothermal agents degrade quickly, clear from the bloodstream, or fail to enter cancer cells efficiently.
The study advances photothermal therapy, a treatment approach that uses light to generate heat inside tumors and destroy cancer cells. The NYU Abu Dhabi team designed tiny, biocompatible and biodegradable nanoparticles that carry a dye activated by near-infrared light. When exposed to this light, the particles heat up damaging tumor tissue while minimizing harm to healthy cells. Near-infrared light was chosen specifically as it penetrates the body to greater depth than visible light, thereby enabling treatment of tumors that are not close to the surface.
A key challenge in photothermal therapy is keeping the light-responsive material stable in the body and efficiently delivering it to tumors. Many existing photothermal agents degrade quickly, clear from the bloodstream, or fail to enter cancer cells efficiently.
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