Killing Cancer With No Side Effects, New Treatment Shows Promise

A new cancer treatment developed by a team at the University of Missouri has successfully put cancer into remission in laboratory mice with none of the side effects that traditional chemotherapy or radiation therapy.

The find may prove to be a breakthrough In cancer therapies if the same results are seen in humans.

"Since the 1930s, scientists have sought success with a cancer treatment known as boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT)," said research leader M. Frederick Hawthorne in a statement. "Our team at MU's International Institute of Nano and Molecular Medicine finally found the way to make BNCT work by taking advantage of a cancer cell's biology with nanochemistry."

The team played on the well-understood concept that cancer cells grow faster than regular cells and by doing so absorb more material than normal cells. Hawthorn's team exploited the natural tendency of a certain type of boron to break apart when it captures a neuron, releasing energy, lithium and helium. The process works similar to a Tojan horse: the cancer cells happily absorb the boron chemical and continue to grow. But after being exposed to neutrons the boron atoms shattered, releasing helium and lithium atoms that tear apart the cancer cells and but spare nearby healthy cells.  

"A wide variety of cancers can be attacked with our BNCT technique," Hawthorne said. "The technique worked excellently in mice. We are ready to move on to trials in larger animals, then people. However, before we can start treating humans, we will need to build suitable equipment and facilities. When it is built, MU will have the first radiation therapy of this kind in the world."

President Barack Obama recently awarded Hawthorn the National Medal of Science, the country's highest scientific honor. 

The study "Boron neutron capture therapy demonstrated in mice bearing EMT 6 tumors following selective delivery of boron by rationally designed liposomes." was recently published in the The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).