Scientists at Northwestern University in Illinois have opened the blood-brain barrier in a four-minute procedure that increases drug levels in the brain by up to six times. Experts say this could pave the way for better brain tumor treatments, according to Times Now News.
Being able to open the blood-brain barrier while a patient is awake and able to go home within hours could be a breakthrough in treating neurological diseases and brain tumors, say doctors involved in the study.
Experts say this could pave the way for better brain tumour treatments
Typically, patients undergo brain surgery so that doctors can remove as much of the tumor as possible. But this is complicated because the threadlike elements of the tumor can spread throughout the brain and surgeons can miss edges of it.
Chemotherapy with the drug temozolomide (TMZ) can slow the growth of tumors that remain after surgery to remove the tumor. However, the most effective chemotherapy drugs do not work because the blood-brain barrier protects the drug from entering the brain, according to Times Now News.
In some cases, the disease can start so slowly that symptoms may go unnoticed. This trial shows whether chemotherapy can have a very strong effect on the brain.
The researchers used a small device in the skull to send ultrasound waves to open the blood-brain barrier for about an hour. This allowed the brain to absorb the drug into the bloodstream. They then injected the patient with two chemotherapy drugs, paclitaxel and carboplatin - more powerful than TMZ (a common cancer chemotherapy drug used for many types of cancer). The trial will now look at how well the treatment extended the patient's life.
New breakthrough method increases drug concentration in the brain up to 6 times
What are the symptoms of a brain tumor?
Depending on the size and area of the brain where the tumor is located, symptoms include: Vision problems, speech problems, coordination problems, headaches, persistent nausea, drowsiness, increasingly severe weakness, paralysis on one side, behavioral or mental changes, memory problems.
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