Scientists from the University of Surrey have helped develop nanoparticles which heat up to a temperature high enough to kill cancerous cells but lose heat before they get hot enough to harm healthy tissue.
Thermotherapy has long been used as a treatment method for cancer, but it is difficult to treat patients without damaging healthy cells. However, tumour cells can be weakened or killed without affecting normal tissue if temperatures can be controlled accurately within a range of 42°C to 45°C.
Scientists from Surrey’s Advanced Technology Institute have worked with colleagues from the Dalian University of Technology in China to create nanoparticles which, when implanted and used in a thermotherapy session, can induce temperatures of up to 45°C.
Professor Ravi Silva, Head of the Advanced Technology Institute at the University of Surrey, said: “This could potentially be a game changer in the way we treat people who have cancer.”