Researchers at the National University of Singapore have developed a blood test that can monitor the success of therapy targeted at tumor growth within 24 hours. Such an approach could make it possible to adapt, or even rethink, a treatment quickly according to its effectiveness on cancer.
Unlike chemotherapies which interfere with all rapidly dividing cells and can cause widespread damage, targeted drugs focus on specific molecules that play a key role in cell growth. cancer. Despite the precise nature of these drugs, the clinical evaluation of their efficacy relies mainly on tumor volumetric imaging and/or tissue biopsies. However, these procedures are invasive, expensive and often operated after several weeks of treatment.
Shao Huilin and his team, from the Institute for Health Innovation &Technology (iHealthtech) at the National University of Singapore (NUS), have recently developed a less invasive and more fast. Their work is published in the journal Nature Nanotechnology.
Baptized ExoSCOPE, the method focuses on extracellular vesicles (EVs), tiny particles carried in the blood by cells. In this specific case, the cancerous cells affected by a drug will secrete particles containing traces of the drug.
These extracellular vesicles are at least a hundred times smaller than the diameter of human hair. To "amplify" the drug signals emitted by these particles, the researchers relied on a special sensor setup involving millions of gold nanorings. Sophisticated analysis of the light signals in a small sample of collected blood can then indicate whether or not the drugs have reached their target in the body.
“By using the ExoSCOPE, we can directly measure the results of drug efficacy within 24 hours of starting treatment “, assures Shao Huilin. “This will significantly reduce the time and cost of monitoring cancer treatment “.
Another important point:this new method would thus be able tomonitor the dynamics of the drugs administered over time . Armed with this information, physicians could then "make timely adjustments in personalizing treatment for best results “, continues the researcher.
In a clinical trial involving 106 lung cancer patients, the ExoSCOPE reportedly achieved a 95% accuracy rate when determining drug efficacy, compared to the current gold standard of measuring tumors. On the other hand, he achieved these results in a much shorter time.
For now, the ExoSCOPE is still under development. Researchers now want to expand its scope to cover other types of diseases and support more types of treatment. According to them, the technology could be used in about three years.
