View that cancer with glowing nanoparticles

We can only imagine the medical benefits of easily scoping out that troubled cancer-ridden zone, so we're sure more than a few oncologists are doing victory dances at the U Penn's and U Minnesota's invention of an imaging system that uses fluorescent fluorophores inserted into a cell-like nanoparticle delivery system, which can be used to easily image tissue subcutaneously (see right). Which means doctors can more easily see what's going on with the cancer in question, which means chemotherapy could be administered more effectively, which means lives can be saved (and we get the added benefit of giving off near-infrared light when exposed to it). Let's just hope the nanoparticles don't also give you cancer.

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:04AM]

For some cancers, carcinogenic nanoparticles are the least of your worries. This is awesome news.

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:04AM]

I am one of the coauthors of the paper. I appreciate you writing about this in your blog. Because the paper hasn't actually appeared, you don't know this, but the precise reason why this imaging technique is better than alternative methods for imaging cancer is because it is not toxic, and unlikely itself to cause disease.

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:04AM]

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