Researchers from New York Abu Dhabi are developing nanotechnology to treat cancer

Researchers at New York University Abu Dhabi have developed a new light-based nanotechnology that could improve methods for detecting and treating certain types of cancer, providing a more accurate and potentially less harmful alternative to traditional treatments, whether chemical, radiation or surgical.
The new technology is based on photothermal therapy, a therapeutic approach that uses light to generate heat inside cancer cells and destroy them.
The NYU Abu Dhabi team designed biocompatible, biodegradable nanoparticles that carry a dye that activates near-infrared waves. The particles heat up when exposed to these rays, causing damage mainly to cancer cells and not healthy cells.
The main challenges of photothermal therapy are stabilizing the photoresponsive dye within the body and delivering it efficiently to tumors, as many photothermal materials degrade quickly, are eliminated from the bloodstream, or fail to penetrate cancer cells efficiently.
To avoid this, researchers have developed nanoparticles made of hydroxyapatite, a component of bones and teeth. These particles are coated with a mixture of fats and polymers, which helps them circulate longer in the bloodstream, hides them from the immune system, and allows more of the therapeutic substance to reach the tumors.
“This project combines targeted therapy and imaging in one biocompatible, biodegradable system,” said Mazen Majzoub, associate professor in the Department of Biology at NYU Abu Dhabi and lead author of the study. “As it addresses key challenges in delivering therapeutic agents to tumors, this technology has the potential to improve the precision of cancer treatment.”
The results herald the possibility of adopting nanoparticles as an integrated system for cancer diagnosis and treatment, given the safety and efficiency advantages of photothermal therapy.