Researchers are developing a new pill-based method for detecting breast cancer that they claim would give more precise diagnosis than a mammogram, reducing the number of unnecessary surgeries done on benign tumors. The research was done by scientists at the University of Michigan and published in Molecular Pharmaceutics.
While mammograms are currently the most common method of breast cancer screening, they are known to have several drawbacks. According to one study, about a third of patients are treated with surgery or chemotherapy for benign tumors that the mammogram could not identify as such. In other cases, lumps can be missed when dense breast tissue hides their presence.
In the current study, the researchers developed a pill containing a dye that responds to infrared light to tag a molecule commonly found on tumor cells. Information on the types of molecules on the surface of the tumor cells can better inform physicians as to whether the tumor is malignant or benign.
Furthermore, infrared light does not carry any risk of disrupting DNA and the fact that the dye is consumed orally rather than intravenously reduces the risk of allergic reaction that can occur in rare occasions.
While getting the contents of the pill to the tumor environment without destruction is challenging, the team was able to repurpose a cancer treatment created by Merck that had failed in the phase II clinical trial phase. The pill was found to be safe, but ineffective. Since the dye is not intended to cause an effect in this case, that was not a problem.
When the researchers administrated a pill containing the dye conjugated to this drug to mice with breast cancer, their tumors were shown to light up successfully.
Image: Sumit Bhatnagar, a Ph.D. student in chemical engineering, maintains samples of cancerous cells for use in the development of a pill that could help screen for breast cancer. Image courtesy of Evan Dougherty/Michigan Engineering Communications & Marketing.