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Killing Tumors with Only a Few Injections? Developing a Tumor-Fighting Material
Why This Project Is Important
Cancerous tumor control—and elimination—would have obvious paramount impacts on healthcare. By developing a material designed to destroy a tumor from within the body, patients are at a much lower risk for negative side effects of treatment. This type of treatment is especially important for older populations, those with weakened immune systems, and those who cannot tolerate invasive surgeries.
Project Description
Our research aims to develop a single liquid material that can be injected directly into a tumor, which will:
- expand and harden around the tumor to choke off its access to the body’s nutrient supply;
- kill the tumor;
- deliver cancer-fighting medication to the affected area; and
- biodegrade over the course of one to three years, leaving only healthy tissue where the material once was.
Our final material will not only kill off tumor cells, but will promote the growth of new, healthy cells by design. The final formulation will consist of three parts: two different biocompatible, biodegradable polymers (such as starches, gelatins, or collagens) and additives (such as therapeutic drugs or pain killers). By mixing two different polymers, our tumor-killing material will be broken down by the body at two different rates. Since the body’s natural tissue-replacement process can take some time, the longer-lasting polymer will serve as a scaffolding material for new, healthy cells to grow on—further increasing the chances of a full recovery. Now, our team needs to test our material on different types of cancerous tissues to see which can be targeted and treated effectively by this new material, and identify which additives to the material prove most useful.
Meet the Researcher
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What Your Donation Can Help Us Do:
- Develop a tumor-destroying injectable material
- Identify which types of cancerous cells can be eliminated by the material
$1 5 Funders
Receipt acknowledging tax-deductible status of your donation
$50 1 Funder
The above, plus access to website that includes updates on the progress of the project
$100 0 Funders
All of the above, plus a Michigan Tech keychain or equivalent
$500 0 Funders
All of the above, plus acknowledgement in publications from the project and signed copies of all journal articles
$2,000 0 Funders
All of the above, plus a signed copy of the investigator’s book that is related to the project
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Questions for the Researcher