Nanotechnology in Treating Cancer - Research Paper Example

Number] Nano in Treating Cancer The human body is a complex system that is made up of several cellsthat combine to ‎form organs, tissues, organ systems and what not. Therefore, when a part of the body is harmed ‎and needs to be fixed, it would be difficult to administer a drug that would only affect the ‎inflicted area. For this purpose, the Nano technology was created. Nano, rising to its name, is a ‎very small particle that acts as a target drug. Nanoparticles act where required leaving the other ‎cells unharmed. They are organic in nature as Nano components consist mainly of Carbon atoms ‎only which are hybridized and covalently bonded (Selvamuthukumar et al 103). ‎ The Nano technology is fast developing in cancer treatment. It is difficult to kill the ‎cancer cells in the body because they are surrounded by normal functioning cells which shouldn’t ‎be harmed. Silicon Nanobombs were made to fight this war on cancer. They have successfully ‎been used against killing breast cancer cells as well as tumors. A type of Nanobomb, called the ‎porous silicon Nanobomb, has also been used to kill cancer cells without killing normal cells. ‎They are generated by an NIR light (Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center).‎ Nanoparticles are very specific in nature, sort of like enzymes. However, they release ‎enzymes, proteins and sometimes antibodies to fight against their specificity. They also require ‎different conditions of reactions which usually consist of low temperature and maybe high ‎pressure. The best part about Nano treatment in cancer is that even though your cancer cells are ‎being killed without any other being harmed, there are no toxic effects left in your body. It is ‎very different from chemotherapy although it might be similar to radiation (American Institute of Physics). ‎ Nanotubes are also part of the Nano family but are different from Silicon Nanobombs. ‎Nanotubes are cylindrical in shape and larger than Nanobombs. They are extremely strong, one of ‎the strongest forms of carbon structures present. However, as Nanobombs are used in treating ‎cancer, they do not cause toxicity in the person afflicted with cancer. Nanotubes are somewhat ‎different. Their nature is not to kill cancer cells at all but it is used in treating breast cancer. How? ‎Well, lasers make the Nanotubes fit for acting upon the cells to zap them up and destroy them so ‎that the process of metastasis is unable to take place and the cancer does not spread elsewhere in ‎the body. The heat from the laser is also at a high temperature but it is only for a short while and ‎the exposure to this kind of radiation should be done at intervals. Clinical trials are going on by ‎Doctors and Scientists alike to use this technology openly and widely in the world (Selvamuthukumar et al 103).‎ The Nanotubes technology is also being used in curing brain tumors. With cancer, it is not ‎the part about destroying the cells that is difficult. It is making sure that all of them are destroyed ‎and the other normal cells surrounding the cancer cells do not get damaged in the process. With ‎Nanotubes, they directly attack the cancer cells in the brain but there are some toxic effects left. ‎Trials are being held on animals, especially mice, to make certain that it is fit to be operated on a ‎human.‎ Nanotubes and Silicon Nanobombs are both being used in the same process; to cure ‎cancer. But their mode of action and structure and effects are pretty different. The name speaks ‎volumes in the first place as there is no Silicon attached to Nanotubes. They are made of pure ‎Carbon only. Nanobombs are also more biodegradable than Nanotubes. Nanobombs are also ‎smaller in size than Nanotubes. Nanotubes also work differently. Here, the cells shrink in size ‎until they shrivel up and die and are consumed by the Nanotubes so that they cannot endanger ‎the other cells present in the body until they are removed through various ways. However, in ‎Nanobombs, cells are basically destructed like a bomb has been ignited within, which is exactly ‎what happens, in other words (American Institute of Physics).‎ As the NIR light causes the Nanobombs to come into the body and attack the cancer ‎cells, they invade through the membrane of the cell and cause the temperature of the salt solution ‎inside to rise to a considerably high level which makes the cell burst. The cell becomes dead after ‎that, the contents of it becoming a morphological dead. Nanobombs do not work differently than ‎this. There is a misconception that Nanobombs invade the cell and cause it to starve, making the ‎solution inside a hypotonic which would eventually cause the cell to shrink and shrivel (Darrin). This is ‎not the case. Nanobombs cause complete and quick destruction of the cells by causing it to burst ‎completely, so drastically so that the cells are shown to depict a blackish color which shows them ‎being burnt. This is not caused by ‘nutrient deficiency’ but rather the boiling of the salt solution ‎of NaCl inside the cell. ‎ Another Nano technology that is being adapted to usage is that of Nanosponges They are ‎probably the safest and harmless way to target cells. They also release their component drug at a ‎planned time. Unlike all the others, Nanosponges are non-toxic in nature, insoluble in organic or ‎inorganic solvents (and water) and like the common sponge found in homes and kitchens, they ‎have pores as well. Nanosponges are known to be utilized in various things such as X-ray ‎crystallography and chromatography (Sazan et al). Because they function really well and are knowingly ‎compatible, it becomes easy to use Nanosponges from time to time for various applications. They ‎are probably even safer to use than Nanoparticles, which are considered to be the safest possible ‎solution since they are pretty small in size and have no known laser light reaction necessity (Chongmu). ‎ The Nano technology is the turn of the century discovery. They are possibly the solutions ‎of many of the problems occurring in the body and are equally efficient in diagnosing the ‎problem as well as solving it. As mentioned before, Nanoparticles are biocompatible so they do ‎not harm the aqueous nature of the body while performing their function. And since after ‎successfully doing what they are built to do, it is necessary that there be no toxicity present in the ‎body. Nanoparticles are also biodegradable and do not stay in the body to cause any harm to it (Sazan et al).‎ It is fast becoming a way to cure cancer. The major problem with cancer is that the ‎infected cells are usually small in number and are found in an unexposed part of the body, ‎usually imbedded between layers and layers of normal cells and blood. To destroy these cells ‎without damaging any other tissue in the range was physically impossible. Until the Nano ‎technology came along. This could easily eradicate chemotherapy and the radiation therapy that ‎makes cancer so unbearable for patients with hair loss and skin damage as well as a rapid ‎deterioration occurring to their health which even cancer hadn’t done so.‎ To destroy the cancer cells, the acting drug must be specific for those cells. With ‎Nanobombs and Nanotubes present which act like hormones, that is, they only attack the cells ‎they are specific to; killing only cancer cells is very much possible. And since they are ‎biodegradable, removing them tactfully from the body isn’t an issue either. Silicon Nanobombs ‎do not just enter the body through the mouth because they need an energy boost to react the way ‎they do which is usually provided by an NIR laser light. The light has a high level of radiation ‎but it does not cause any permanent damage to the body.‎ Even though there have been a lot of studies and research going on (still continuing ‎though) with Nano technology, it is still not very widely used or accepted in many parts of the ‎world. The education and awareness behind it is fairly less which makes people unsure of using it ‎to try to cure themselves. The word ‘clinical trials’ also put off some patients since it does not ‎help to think that anything being administered on them is merely an experiment and hasn’t been ‎approved by doctors all over the world as the exact treatment for cancer.‎ Clinical trials have been going on where Nanotubes are injected in the brain of mice to see ‎if their tumor subsides and more than half of the mice seem cured after it but using it as a widely ‎acknowledged treatment, and an authorized one at that, is still under way. Of course, the body ‎and circulation system of certain animals and humans is entirely different and it could have the ‎most adverse reactions present but even operating on some humans have not indicated that this ‎could potentially cause disastrous effects. Rather, it cures beautifully without the constant pain ‎and harm to be endured. There have been no reported harmful incidents in trials or testing in ‎animals and pretty soon, this will be the newest way to get rid of cancer, probably the most ‎common as well.‎ Work Cited American Institute of Physics. "Nanoparticles as destructive beacons to zap tumors." ScienceDaily, 23 Jul. 2010. Web. 9 Oct. 2012. Chongmu, Lee. "Porous silicon nanoparticles for cancer photothermotherapy". Nanoscale Research Letters, 11 April 2011. Web. 9 Oct. 2012. Darrin. Joy. "Nanotechnology may enhance benefits of brain tumor therapy". City of hope, 7 Mrch 2011. Web. 9 Oct. 2012. Selvamuthukumar Subramanian, Anandam Singireddy, Kannan Krishnamoorthy and Manavalan Rajappan. Nanosponges: A Novel Class of Drug Delivery System - Review. J Pharm Pharmaceut Science 15.1. (2012): pp103-111 Sazan, Haidary, Emma P. Córcoles, Nihad K. Ali. "Nanoporous Silicon as Drug Delivery Systems for Cancer Therapies". Journal of Nanomaterials. Web. 18 May 2012. 9 Oct. 2012. Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center. "Nanotube therapy takes aim at breast cancer stem cells." ScienceDaily, 9 Feb. 2012. Web. 9 Oct. 2012. Read More