Nanoparticle delivery sytem for anti-tumor toxins reduces drug dose 1,000 times

April 3, 2008 | Source: KurzweilAI

Washington University School of Medicine researchers using drug-coated nanoparticles to deliver fumagillin (a fungal toxin cancer treatment) to tumors found that a drug dose 1,000 times lower than used previously still significantly slowed tumor growth.

Fumagillin can have neurotoxic side effects at the high doses required with standard methods. The fumagillin nanoparticles were effective in very low doses because they were designed to concentrate where tumors create new blood vessels.

Washington University School of Medicine News Release