• Question: is the cure for cancer coming soon?

    Asked by sachyn to Rebecca, Laura on 15 Jun 2016. This question was also asked by caller factor.
    • Photo: Rebecca Pullon

      Rebecca Pullon answered on 15 Jun 2016:

      Hi sachyn,

      Hmm that is a tough question. As I’m sure you know, a lot of money goes into research against cancer, but it’s also a tough opposition. I think it will be a while yet before we have blanked one-size-fits-all cure for cancer.

      Some of the people in my lab investigate high-intensity-focused-ultrasound (HIFU) for shrinking tumours. This means they use ultrasound beams to focus on a small area, rather than radiation which kills everything in it’s way (even healthy tissue). So that is an exciting potential treatment. Others are using microbubbles and nanoparticles which gather around the tumour site and then release tumour-fighting particles. Another pretty cool technique!

      So who knows… Maybe you will help come up with the next step 😉

      Rebecca

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