Scientists looking to make cancer therapies that combine chemotherapy and immunotherapy safer and more effective have come up with a new tactic to deliver those drugs: stick them in a hydrogel, inject them into a tumor, and let the drugs kick in one after the other.
The idea was the brainchild of Zhen Gu, a biomedical engineer at the University of North Carolina. It’s the latest in a series of biomedical inventions from Gu, who created a “smart” insulin patch and was recognized by MIT Technology Review as one of the top 35 innovators under 35.
Gu and his colleagues tested the new drug-loaded gel on mouse models of breast cancer and melanoma. It was able to shrink tumors and reduce recurrence rates of cancer after tumors were removed surgically.
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