Summary
Researchers at Northwestern University in Illinois have made a chemotherapy drug called 5-fluorouracil (5FU) much more effective against cancer. By changing its structure into spherical nucleic acids (SNAs), the drug becomes 20,000 times more powerful while having fewer harmful effects on healthy cells.
Key Facts
- Researchers improved the cancer-fighting drug 5-fluorouracil (5FU) to be 20,000 times more effective.
- The new form of the drug, called spherical nucleic acids (SNAs), targets cancer cells more precisely.
- Tests on mice showed the drug worked 12.5 times better at entering leukemia cells than the standard form.
- The improved drug effectively reduced cancer growth up to 59 times and had no noticeable side effects.
- The study focused on acute myeloid leukemia (AML), a type of blood cancer.
- The new approach may lead to better treatments for other diseases, including autoimmune and infectious diseases.
- Future tests will involve more small animal models and potential human trials.
- The SNAs structure allows the drug to be absorbed easily by cancer cells, sparing healthy cells.
