Tumour Trapping
Glioblastoma multiforme cancer, or GBM, is the most common form of brain cancer accounting for about 50% of brain tumour cases. As with other metastasising cancers, it releases enzymes into its surrounding environment to break down surrounding tissue and divides uncontrollably, both processes require a lot of energy to do so. The cancer can achieve this by moving along axons or the surfaces of blood vessels. Surgeons are often reluctant to operate on these tumours because they are often in difficult locations to operate and are aggressive so are likely to return as not all of the tumour will be removed.
Researchers have produced a fibre from polycarpolactone (PCL) surrounded with a polyurethane cover that is contoured as a blood vessel or nerve cell would be. The aim is for this fibre to act as a diversion for the cancer. These fibres would then lead either to more operable areas or even outside the body where a gel could be used to kill the cancer (cyclopamine). Initial experiments on lab rats using the fibre both coated and uncoated showed that those with a coated covering had significantly reduced tumour sizes of those that did not receive the treated fibre.
Ravi Bellamkonda explained that these cancer cells usually ride blood vessels like a monorail and so they have effectively "high jacked" the process and hope to use these fibres to transport these tumours to areas they desire.
Here is an interesting video explaining the principle: https://phys.org/news/2014-02-hijack-cancer-migration-mechanism-brain.html#inlRlv
While this is not exactly a therapeutic treatment, it does provide hope that the otherwise aggressive cancer would become more easily manageable, to the point where GBM could be treated as a chronic condition.
There are currently drug under research that could be used to treat GBM chemically but this mechanical approach seems to be a possible short-term approach. It is preferred to chemical treatments that could be damaging to surrounding cells as it is simply a device. It is currently underwaiting approval from the FDA which could take up to 10 years. It is certainly an interesting prospect for the time being.
Ethical question of the day: Should drug companies really take so long to develop drugs? One side of the argument is that many patients die whilst waiting for the treatments to be developed, on the other side, rapid development of drugs can lead to insufficient testing and the production of drugs that may do more harm than good.