Researchers from Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), BIND Biosciences, Inc., and colleagues published the development of a targeted polymeric nanoparticle, called BIND-014, in the April 4th issue of Science Translational Medicine. This work describes the first human trial to test a targeted nanoparticle capable of controlling a drug’s release. These nanoparticles have been optimized to release the chemotherapy drug docetaxel in a controlled manner, in order to deliver a higher and more sustained dose of the drug directly to tumors. This approach allows for up to 10 times more drug to reach tumors resulting in: (i) anti-tumor efficacy at relatively low administerd doses of the drug, (ii) anit-tumor efficacy in tumor types that the drug has shown minimal activity in, and (iii) a reduction in drug toxicity and off-target effects.
[Read more from the National Cancer Institute][Read more from the Science Magazine] [Read more from Brigham Women’s Hospital] [Read the press release from Boston Herald] [Read the press release from MIT] [Read a patient’s interview] [Read more on marketwatch] [Read more on ABC news]
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