1. The Gold-silica Nanoshell Infusion Treatment
2. Anti-sMIC Immunotherapy Antibody Therapy
3. Prostate Gel Spacer
4. Ultra-hypofractionated Stereotactic Body Radiotherapy (SBRT)
5. Olaparib
6. MKC8866
7. Focal Cryotherapy
The Gold-silica Nanoshell Infusion Treatment
Gold-silica nanoshell infusion is a cancer therapy invented at Rice University that allows for a focused therapy that treats the cancer while sparing the rest of the prostate, thus preserving a patient's quality of life by reducing unwanted side effects, which could include erectile dysfunction and/or the leakage of urine.
The treatment uses tiny silica spheres with a thin outer layer of gold, are called nanoshells. They are about 50 times smaller than a red blood cell, which Halas invented them at Rice in 1997. The cancer cells are destroyed by heating nanoshells with a
low-power near-infrared laser. This method of destroying cancer cells could pass harmlessly through
healthy tissue.
Anti-sMIC Immunotherapy Antibody Therapy
Dr. Jennifer Wu, Ph.D., Northwestern University and her research team have been investigating the mechanisms driving prostate cancer progression and developing novel treatments and models to combat metastasis for the past 15 years.they discovered that cancer cells are able to bypass immune cells and survive. During the early stage of cancer development, prostate cells will start to express MIC. The primary function of MIC is to affect the immune cells. Cancer cells release a soluble form of MIC, called sMIC to bypass immune surveillance. Thus, Anti-sMIC Immunotherapy Antibody Therapy is developed to target sMIC. Currently, Dr. Wu and her colleagues are working toward bringing this anti-sMIC antibody from pre-clinical to clinical use in humans.
Prostate Cancer Gel Spacer
Radiotherapy for prostate cancer treament can be highly effective, it uses high-energy X-rays are targeted at the prostate, killing cancer cells and preventing them from spreading. Nevertheless, due to the close proximity, nearby healthy organs can be affected resulting in side effects including rectal bleeding, erectile dysfunction, bowel and bladder damage caused by Radiaotherapy.Prostate gel spacer is found to be able to reduces bowel and bladder damage. The liquid gel spacer increases the distance between the prostate and rectum to reduce the amount of radiation absorbed during treatment. The gel once injected will sets within seconds, with this method the side effects of radiotherapy can be reduced by 70%.
Ultra-hypofractionated Stereotactic Body Radiotherapy (SBRT)
Ultra-hypofractionated stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) is expected to reduce prostate cancer treatment time from two months to two weeks. SBRT deliver five higher doses of radiation to patients over one to two weeks. This technique allows scientists to target tumours to sub-millimetre precision.More accuracy brings down the chance of damaging surrounding healthy tissue, which can lead to urinary and rectal side effects such as more frequent or urgent urination and diarrhoea. To deliver curative treatment over fewer days mean that men would get the equivalent benefit from their radiotherapy while having to spend less time in hospital.
Researchers are still awaiting data on long-term side-effects and overall efficacy.
Olaparib Prostate Cancer
Olaparib could become a revolutionary treatment for prostate cancer - the first genetically targeted drug for fighting the disease. Olaparib, also called Lynparza, acts by targeting and killing cancer cells with defective genetic code, while sparing normal cells with healthy DNA. However, the may not works for every men. Patients can be tested to see if they have the genetic errors that the drug can attack - faulty DNA repair genes including BRCA1 and BRCA2.This precision approach means the patients most likely to benefit will be treated, sparing them potential side-effects from other drugs.
MKC8866
The drug MKC8866 is a small molecule belonging to a group of substances called hydroxy-aryl-aldehydes that has been developed by the originally US-based biotech company MannKind Corporation. MKC8866 counteracts the growth of prostate cancer tumors which interferes with a kind of chain reaction and stop the chain reaction that is linked with the cells' stress response.MKC8866 was formulated for other purposes but exhibited that it inhibits the signal pathway and oncoprotein activation. Thus, it likewise inhibits the development of prostate cancer tumors both in-vitro cell culture and in-vivo, in mouse prostate cancer models.
Focal Cryotherapy for Prostate Cancer
Focal cryotherapy uses ablation, the use of extreme temperatures (up to -40 degree celsius) to destroy the prostate cancer. In focal ablation, the area of the prostate that contains the most severe cancer is targeted, instead of treating the entire prostate gland. Focal Cryotherapy also reduces erectile dysfunction and leakage of urine side effects.Focal cryotherapy allowed magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to be performed at the same time, thus, permitting very specific targeting and also real-time views of the results.
