Prostate cancer represents the second most frequent cause of death from cancer for men in the United States. Researchers from the University of Virginia, Mount Sinai, the University of Michigan, the University of Texas, and many other entities have joined forces for a collaborative study and unveiled promising findings from a novel nanoparticle-based laser-guided therapy in managing this common disease.

Here, in the present study, 44 patients with localized prostate cancer were selected and treated with gold nanoshells along with advanced imaging technology-a combination of magnetic resonance imaging fused with ultrasound. The technique enhances the MRI data, thereby better targeting the targeted tissues as cancerous. These particles measuring a few hundred nanometers in size, smaller than the size of a human hair, are made up of gold nanoshells that have been engineered to absorb certain wavelengths of light, and once energized, they give off heat.

This method had designed the gold nanoshells to localize at the sites of the tumors, thereby allowing one to perform targeted near-infrared laser treatments. Known as nanoparticle-directed focal photothermal ablation, such a technique was able to heat kill and thus remove cancer cells entirely from all angles without affecting the surrounding tissues. What’s startlingly impressive, though is that cancerous cells were successfully removed in 73% of the study participants after 12 months according to the results of their biopsy that were negative in the treated regions.

This treatment was potentially effective not only in cancer but also protected the essential functions-the urinary and sexual health of the patients. The absence of negative side effects features tremendous improvement in the quality of life for patients receiving this therapy.

University of Virginia School of Engineering and Applied Science’s Dr. Jennifer L. West said, “Our discovery marks an important new milestone in prostate cancer treatments. This treatment eradicates the cancerous cells not just effectively but also without destroying these as crucial quality-of-life factors, which happens to be a significant advantage for patients.”. Co-author of the study and one of the inventors of the technology, Dr. West further underlined the essential role that inter-disciplinary collaboration has in advancing cancer treatment options. This new therapy is now commercially available through Nanospectra Biosciences, Inc., a company cofounded by Dr. West. As this research continues, this novel therapy may hold promise for a future revolution in prostate cancer management and new hope for millions of patients and their families.

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