Gold Nanoparticles as a Potential Prostate Cancer Therapy

Currently, prostate cancer treatment typically consists of injecting hundreds of radioactive ‘seeds’ into the prostate. However, that treatment is not effective when treating an aggressive form of prostate cancer.  University of Missouri (Missouria, USA) scientists have found an efficient alternative approach to target prostate tumors.   Kavita Katti and colleagues created radioactive gold nanoparticles and bound them to and epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), an antioxidant compound found in tea leaves. This new treatment would require doses that are thousands of times smaller than chemotherapy;  the team only used one or two injections, and the nanoparticles were observed to more likely to stay very close to the tumor sites.  Submitting that: “This innovative nanotechnological approach serves as a basis for designing biocompatible target specific antineoplastic agents,” the study authors conclude that: “This novel intratumorally injectable …  nanotherapeutic agent may provide significant advances in oncology for use as an effective treatment for prostate and other solid tumors.”