A technology developed in Taiwan could one day allow cancer patients to undergo same-day computerized tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans without the need to wait for contrast agents to clear, cutting diagnostic times in half, a pair of researchers said at a news conference on Wednesday.
Laboratory tests of iron and platinum (FePt) nanoparticles for dual modal CT/MRI molecular imaging — the first of its kind in the world — were conducted by a research team led by Chen Chia-chun (陳家俊), a professor at Academia Sinica and National Taiwan Normal University, and Shieh Dar-bin (謝達斌), a doctor and professor at National Cheng Kung University Medical Center in Tainan.
Their research was partly funded by the National Science Council.
The results of in vitro and in vivo testing appeared in Wednesday’s issue of the Journal of the American Chemical Society as a cover story.
Chen said CT and MRI scans are both time-consuming and costly, with patients often having to wait for two months to be examined, while each test could cost up to NT$6,300.
The Bureau of National Health Insurance said the number of patients receiving CT scans reached 1.02 million in 2008, while 350,000 people received MRIs.
Some patients developed side effects after receiving CT or MRI scans because of the contrast agents, Chen said.
However, the water-soluble FePt nanoparticles presented excellent biocompatibility and hemocompatibility in all test concentrations for the imaging contrast, Chen said.
The nanoparticles are stable and do not easily oxidize or decompose, he said.
With FePt nanoparticles, patients do not need to receive CT and MRI scans on separate occasions as the new diagnostic tools can perform the dual function of showing the position of cancer lesions and their molecular characteristics, Chen said.
Shieh said that the FePt nanoparticles are potentially capable of allowing doctors to find cancer cells’ molecular expressions, helping them to determine what kind of chemotherapy should be prescribed to first-stage cancer patients after surgery.
At present, MRI and CT scans should be performed on a patient 24 hours apart to allow time for the preceding contrast agent to wear off, Shieh said.
Chen said that FePt nanoparticles have a high potential for mass commercial production.
“It would be a star product in the world’s nearly US$5 billion medical diagnosis market,” he said.
Patent applications are pending around the world, Chen said, adding that it would take roughly five years for researchers to complete nanoparticle human trials before the technology would be ready to be marketed.
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