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The only cure for liver cancer lies in a liver transplant or the removal of the cancerous part of the liver.Both methods involve major surgery.And for patients who get a transplant,a lifetime of immuno-suppressant drugs to prevent their bodies from rejecting the new organ.
But in the future, there may be another way to treat liver cancer.A study led by researchers at the University of Missouri School of Medicine has shown that a new, minimally invasive approach can target and destroy precancerous tumor cells in the livers of mice and in in-vitro human cells.
With both chemotherapy and radiation, healthy cells around the tumor are damaged.But this approach involves the use of natural, non-toxic chemical compounds from plants.
“It sounds like a fairy tale,but we are really in advanced stages in terms of tumor treatment, in terms of disease diagnostics.”
Kattesh Katti was the lead author of the study that used very small particles of gold,nano-particles encapsulated in a protective stabilizer from an acacia tree.The particles attract precancerous and malignant cells,which are far more susceptible to lower levels of heat than healthy cells.
“The patient will be administered with these nano particles.Within a couple of hours, the patient will be treated with lasers, and then the patient can go home.So, there is no radioactivity.There is no toxic waste, there is no toxicity, systemic toxicity, to the patient.”
Katti says the cost of treatment will be low, and what’s more,he says this type of treatment could be used for other types of cancer, arthritis and other debilitating diseases.
Should this technique work,it will be good news for the nearly 800,000 people who are diagnosed with liver cancer each year.
Carol Pearson, VOA news, Washington.
