liver transplantation for patients with liver cancer, nanotechnology research, and clinical studies to fight brain tumors.
Liver transplantation as a potential option for individuals with liver cancer
This medical breakthrough was the result of a research undertaken at Houston Methodist, JC Walter Jr. Transplant Center, and the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. The study included twelve patients with liver cancer, and six of whom got liver transplants. At one year, this group had a 100% survival rate and an 83 percent survival rate at five years.
Additionally, 50% of patients had no return of malignancy five years following transplantation. Doctor R. Mark Ghobrial, chief of Liver Transplantation at the Hospital Transplant Center, said, “These results are promising, because at this time there is no cure for liver cancer if the tumor cannot be surgically removed”.
A nanodevice capable of delivering medications to treat chronic conditions
Scientists led by Dr Alessandro Grattoni, president of the Department of Nanomedicine, began experimenting with nanotechnology in the treatment of chronic degenerative diseases such as arthritis, diabetes, and heart disease. This nanodevice is about the size of a grape and is operated remotely, gradually delivering the medication required by each patient.
The implant is placed beneath the skin and may hold up to a year’s worth of medicine before needing to be replenished. Dr. Grattoni, the lead researcher of the study and innovator of the device, said, “With this research we see this universal drug implantation as the future of care for chronic diseases, because it does not have the inconvenience of oral doses, which are frequently forgotten by patients, nor night doses, which are often skipped”.
The herpes virus and the common cold are being used to treat malignant brain tumors
Another medical breakthrough in which Houston Methodist Hospital was involved is the research suggesting the use of the herpes virus and the common cold virus to fight brain tumors. Inactivated herpes virus DNA is mixed with the common cold virus and injected into the brain tissue around the tumor’s core in these clinical studies.
Doctor David Baskin, a neurosurgeon and director of the Center for Brain and Pituitary Tumors at Houston Methodist Hospital, said, “We chose the common cold virus because of its ability to spread rapidly and reach many of the hard-to-reach tumor cells and spread through remaining tumor branches that cannot be removed with surgery”.
According to WIPO, medical innovation will be the defining force in the near future of medicine. Under this heading, medicine must innovate in technical and intellectual fields in order to accomplish the intended outcome, which is to treat and improve the health of the entire community.
