New ‘drug sponge’ could improve effectiveness of chemotherapy, say researchers

A BIOMEDICAL “sponge” that mops up the leftovers from cancer treatment could boost the effectiveness of chemotherapy, scientists claim.

The “drug sponge” is a cylinder coated with an absorbent polymer that is inserted into a vein carrying blood away from a cancer-ridden organ.

By removing drugs not taken up by the tumour, it stops excess chemo agent passing through the circulation to other parts of the body.

In early tests on pigs, the “chemofilter” soaked up 64 per cent of a liver cancer drug, doxorubicin, injected upstream. Doctors hope the device will help them avoid dangerous side effects of chemotherapy and deliver higher doses of drugs safely.

Professor Nitash Balsara, a member of the research team from the University of California at Berkeley, said: “An absorber is a standard chemical engineering concept. Absorbers are used in petroleum refining to remove unwanted chemicals such as sulphur. Literally, we’ve taken the concept out of petroleum refining and applied it to chemotherapy.”

While the scientists have focused on liver cancer, they say the technique could be used whenever a tumour is confined to an organ. Chemotherapy is typically accompanied by major side effects including nausea, vomiting, hair loss, suppression of the immune system, and anaemia.

The scientists spent more than a year perfecting a way to adhere the polymer to a 3D printed cylinder that could be placed inside a vein. In practice the device would probably have to be customised for individual patients, he added.

The research is reported in the journal ACS Central Science. Drug sponges could be applied to many types of drug.