Brain Tumor Diagnosis and Treatment Using Nanotechnology

Brain tumors are the second-most common form of cancer that affects children. They are the number one cancer killer of children.

We use nanotechnology to study the molecules (small biological particles) that we can deliver to brain tumors to successfully diagnose and treat this difficult cancer.

Dr. Richard G. Ellenbogen and his colleagues at University of Washington Medicine and the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center are studying ways to improve brain-imaging techniques with an emphasis on more clearly distinguishing normal brain tissue from abnormal tumor tissue. These images will help neurosurgeons operate on the brain more safely.

Currently, almost 50 percent of all brain tumors, mostly the benign ones, may be cured through surgery. The goal of improving imaging techniques is to enable surgeons to remove abnormal or diseased tumor tissue more thoroughly, while reducing damage to healthy brain cells.

It may also lead the way for oncologists (doctors who treat cancer) to deliver cancer-fighting therapies directly to brain tumors, preserve healthy brain tissues and more effectively destroy tumors.