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Media Backgrounder
Fighting Cancer with Nanotechnology:
The NCI Alliance for Nanotechnology in Cancer
Nanotechnology
is the development and engineering of devices so small that they are
measured on a molecular scale. This emerging field involves scientists
from many different disciplines, including physicists, chemists,
engineers, information technologists, and material scientists, as well
as biologists. Nanotechnology is being applied to almost every field
imaginable, including electronics, magnetics, optics, information
technology, materials development, and biomedicine.
The Size of Things
Nanoscale
devices are somewhere from one hundred to ten thousand times smaller
than human cells. They are similar in size to large biological
molecules ("biomolecules") such as enzymes and receptors. As an
example, hemoglobin, the molecule that carries oxygen in red blood
cells, is approximately 5 nanometers in diameter. Nanoscale devices
smaller than 50 nanometers
can easily enter most cells, while those smaller than 20 nanometers can
move out of blood vessels as they circulate through the body.
Because
of their small size, nanoscale devices can readily interact with
biomolecules on both the surface of cells and inside of cells. By
gaining access to so many areas of the body, they have the potential to
detect disease and deliver treatment in ways unimagined before now.
Since biological processes-including events that lead to cancer-occur
at the nanoscale at and inside cells, nanotechnology offers a wealth of
tools that are providing cancer researchers with new and innovative
ways to diagnose and treat cancer.
Nanotechnology is Here
Work
is currently being done to find ways to safely move these new research
tools into clinical practice. But there are already examples in
clinical use that show the promise of nanotechnology.
- Nanotechnology
has been used to create new and improved imaging techniques to find
small tumors. Researchers have shown that incredibly small iron oxide
particles (nanoparticulates) can be used with magnetic resonance
imaging (MRI) to accurately detect cancers that have spread to lymph
nodes, without requiring surgery.
- Nanoscale drug delivery devices are being developed to deliver anticancer therapeutics specifically to tumors. Liposomes
are one such "first generation" nanoscale device. Liposomal doxorubicin
is used to treat specific forms of cancer, while liposomal amphotericin
B treats fungal infections often associated with aggressive anticancer
treatment. Recently, a nanoparticulate formulation of the well-known
anticancer compound taxol was submitted as a new treatment for advanced
stage breast cancer.
- In
the near future, nanoscale devices may lead to detection of the
earliest stages of cancer while simultaneously delivering anticancer
agents to the tumor. Early research has shown that nanoparticulate
sensors can detect the cell death that occurs when a cancer cell
succumbs to the effects of an anticancer drug. As a highly sensitive
means of determining if a therapy is working, this application of
nanotechnology could save a patient from months of ineffective
medication and debilitating side effects, allowing a switch to a
potentially more effective course of treatment. In addition, such a
sensor could greatly accelerate clinical trials of new anticancer
agents, again by demonstrating very early signals of the effectiveness
of a drug.
The
NCI envisions over the next five years that nanotechnology will result
in significant advances in early detection, molecular imaging,
assessment of therapeutic efficacy, targeted and multifunctional
therapeutics, and the prevention and control of cancer.
Strategic Implementation: The Cancer Nanotechnology Plan
The
NCI has been a leader in funding cancer-related nanotechnology research
for the past five years. NCI has adopted several strategies to support
efforts that will ensure a cancer nanotechnology research portfolio
that is comprehensive and strategic. Among these are:
- Continued funding of nanotechnology research;
- NCI supported cancer nanotechnology symposia;
- Coordinated research efforts between intramural and extramural research; and
- Development of the Nanotechnology Characterization Laboratory (NCL)
Based
on the positive results from pilot-scale programs, the NCI has
developed the Cancer Nanotechnology Plan (CNPlan), a planning document
designed to detail the process involved in accelerating the application
of nanotechnology to cancer research.
The
CNPlan is a focused strategy to capitalize on past NCI investments in
nanotechnology and direct those and new efforts on the immediate
mission of the NCI. The plan carries an aggressive timeline and
specific milestones to achieve the NCI goals. The projects initiated
under the CNPlan will be integrated, milestone driven, and product
oriented. The efforts will include targeted objectives and goals, and
will use a project-management approach to help capitalize on today's
opportunities to create the tools that both cancer researchers and
clinicians need. These initiatives are focusing on applying research
and translating it into clinical products.
The
NCI has devoted the past year to soliciting input and feedback on the
Cancer Nanotechnology Plan from a large cross-section of the cancer
community. But as mentioned, nanotechnology - and cancer nanotechnology
specifically - involves elements of numerous disciplines, including
chemistry, physics, biology, material science, and others. These are
disciplines that have traditionally worked independently. The
fundamental premise of the CNPlan is that this undertaking will only
succeed with widespread participation from all these disciplines and
partners. As a result, the funding mechanism chosen for the initiative
stresses interdisciplinary team efforts involving partners from across
the cancer research and nanotechnology development communities.
Based
on the input NCI has solicited from researchers and clinicians, the
cancer community will be extremely involved in the implementation of
this plan. NCI will continue to utilize traditional funding mechanisms
to further promising research, and will supplement these efforts with a
targeted approach.
Moving Ahead Safely
Concerns
have been voiced that nanotechnology, specifically biomedical
nanotechnology, may be advancing too fast, and regulatory agencies are
not able to adequately address potential safety concerns. The NCI
recognizes the importance of advancing our knowledge and understanding
of the technology, while also ensuring that the technology is safe and
effective. The success of efforts in the field is contingent upon
scientific excellence in research and development that is both ethical
and safe for the body and the environment. The NCI is systematically
addressing these issues within the purview of its biomedical expertise
and its collaborations, primarily through the newly developed
Nanotechnology Characterization Laboratory. The NCI has partnered with
the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) to help
develop criteria to define all the key physical and biological
characteristics of nanodevices intended for use in cancer-related
nanotechnology research. Furthermore, the NCI is expanding its
interaction with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to
facilitate smoother transition from bench-to-bedside by ensuring that
researchers have sufficient and appropriate data to guide the
development of safe and efficient nanodevices.
Funding
The
NCI Alliance for Nanotechnology in Cancer represents an investment of
$144.3 million over five years. The NCI, based on its experience in
funding cancer nanotechnology research and on the input received from
cancer and nanotechnology experts across the country, envisions that a
major initiative in applied cancer nanotechnology has great potential
to lead to significant clinical advances. Given the urgency of
developing new diagnostic, therapeutic, and preventive measures to
fight cancer, NCI believes that nanotechnology is primed to be further
explored as a tool in our arsenal against cancer. This initiative is
one of several that NCI supports to further enable the early detection,
diagnosis, and treatment of cancer for the benefit of human health.
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