Translational research for cancer therapy based on medical nanorobotics

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Although the large majority of cancers are localized (>85%), delivery systems still rely on systematically circulating vectors based primarily on physical characteristics and biochemical principles alone which result to only a small fraction of the total administered dose reaching the active tumor cells. Indeed, systemic delivery combined with the limitation of therapeutic vectors to diffuse deeper in tumor tissues and the inability to target all tumor active cells are known to be major obstacles to achieve optimal treatment outcomes for localized cancers. As such, Paul Ehrlich's “magic bullet” concept has stimulated research for therapeutic agents with the capability to go straight to their intended targets. The “magic bullet” concept is still considered the ultimate approach to maximize the therapeutic effects of a given drug molecule without affecting non-target tissues. But the reality is that there has never been a drug or drug delivery system that goes straight to the target in the body, and no approach has provided anything better than a few percent of the total administered dose reaching the intended target site. Over the last 15 years, we have been the pioneers and the leaders in a new paradigm in drug delivery where nanotechnology has been combined with principles of robotics to develop the medical nanorobotic technologies enabling new navigable therapeutic agents to go straight to the site of treatment while sparing healthy tissues, hence providing a new approach that could be considered as a modern version of the "magic bullet" for localized cancers. By doing so, we expect that the therapeutic effects will be increased exponentially for a given therapeutic agent while minimizing the level of toxicity for the patients, resulting in less hospital stays, potential savings in health cares, and a better quality of life for the patients experiencing more efficient therapeutic effects with minimum risk of metastasis. With the active participation of clinicians, translational research efforts will be conducted and interventional procedures based on our unique medical nanorobotic technologies will be developed to provide solutions and cost effective approaches that better respond to unmet clinical needs, adding to the tool box of clinicians while providing more options to treat cancer.