New Means of Delivery

Making sure that a drug reaches the intended tissue or organ in a patient and is given at the correct dose are two of the most important issues in modern medicine. This is particularly important for cancer treatment, as most chemotherapy drugs are toxic to both normal and cancer cells.

Nanotechnology offers solutions to these problems. For example, coating a drug in different molecules can make it more soluble in water (for easier application), allow it to penetrate cell membranes more easily or even target it to a specific tissue or organ. In addition, new devices such as iMEDD incorporates nanoscale pores which, by varying their size and length, control the release of drugs such as insulin. Such devices can be implanted and allow continued release of a drug over the period of weeks, thus avoiding the need for regular injections.

Example of drugs that use nanotechnology for improved delivery include ABRAXANE which is a nanoparticle formulation of the chemotherapy drug paclitaxel and the protein albumin, and is more effective and less toxic than the free form of the drug.