New Cancer Treatment on the Horizon?
For those who have experienced chemotherapy, or watched their loved ones go through it, the idea of an effective cancer treatment with NO side effects seems like a dream come true. Dreams can be a long time in coming, however. The brain child of American inventor John Kanzius may one day be the answer to the prayers of cancer patients. First, his Kanzius Machine must be rigorously tested in laboratory animals before clinical trials are approved for cancer patients. Preliminary lab testing has shown great promise.
The potential new treatment that Kanzius envisioned was featured on CBS’ “Sixty Minutes” (April 13, 2008). In theory, it involves gold or carbon nanoparticles injected into the bloodstream or into a cancerous tumor. These metallic-laced nanoparticles, already FDA-approved, attract radio waves. Once the diseased cells are properly targeted, radio waves would heat them to an optimal temperature to eradicate them. The idea is to destroy cancer cells, leaving healthy cells undamaged. Nanoparticles are so tiny that trillions of them can be contained in a test tube. The chief problem is finding a delivery system in which the nanoparticles would bind only to cancer cells.
How did a man without a medical degree or credentials as a lab scientist come up with a revolutionary idea to treat cancer? Diagnosed with liver cancer six years ago, John Kanzius had endured thirty-six rounds of chemotherapy. During his treatments at a renowned cancer center, he was touched by the faces of young cancer patients, children with teddy bears, fighting for their lives. It was then that he vowed to try to find a better way to fight cancer
One sleepless night, the retired radio and TV executive envisioned using radio waves to treat cancer. In his childhood, he had built radio sets. He understood that radio waves could harmlessly pass through a living organism but were attracted by metal. Once his primitive tests showed promise, the senior citizen built radio-wave equipment and conducted experiments in his garage. He invested $200,000 of his own money to build prototypes of his radio frequency (RF) equipment. Support and funding for his efforts have since materialized from many sources. His Kanzius RF Machines are now selectively placed in laboratories at the University of Pittsburgh and at MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas.
At MD Anderson, Dr. Steven Curley, a surgical oncologist, began to work closely with Kanzius on his invention. Dr. Curley believes the potential treatment to be the most exciting new development he has seen in twenty years of working in oncology. Like an “ultimate weed killer” able to kill weeds without harming grass, the treatment is designed to destroy only the cancer cells. The ability to eliminate solid tumors injected with gold nanoparticles has already been demonstrated in rats and rabbits. The ultimate goal is to be able to target microscopic cancer cells that have circulated throughout the body. Curing metastatic cancers would not be possible without such a selective delivery system. If a way is found to precisely target and destroy only cancer cells, then the potential to cure many types of cancers is tremendous – and with no pain and distress.
John Kanzius is working with the Lee Memorial Health System in southwest Florida to coordinate tentative clinical trials after approval is granted. He hopes to live to see his dream realized some three or four years down the road.
Sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kanzius machine;
http://60minutes.yahoo.com/segment/159/the_kanzius_machine
One sleepless night, the retired radio and TV executive envisioned using radio waves to treat cancer. In his childhood, he had built radio sets. He understood that radio waves could harmlessly pass through a living organism but were attracted by metal. Once his primitive tests showed promise, the senior citizen built radio-wave equipment and conducted experiments in his garage. He invested $200,000 of his own money to build prototypes of his radio frequency (RF) equipment. Support and funding for his efforts have since materialized from many sources. His Kanzius RF Machines are now selectively placed in laboratories at the University of Pittsburgh and at MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas.
At MD Anderson, Dr. Steven Curley, a surgical oncologist, began to work closely with Kanzius on his invention. Dr. Curley believes the potential treatment to be the most exciting new development he has seen in twenty years of working in oncology. Like an “ultimate weed killer” able to kill weeds without harming grass, the treatment is designed to destroy only the cancer cells. The ability to eliminate solid tumors injected with gold nanoparticles has already been demonstrated in rats and rabbits. The ultimate goal is to be able to target microscopic cancer cells that have circulated throughout the body. Curing metastatic cancers would not be possible without such a selective delivery system. If a way is found to precisely target and destroy only cancer cells, then the potential to cure many types of cancers is tremendous – and with no pain and distress.
John Kanzius is working with the Lee Memorial Health System in southwest Florida to coordinate tentative clinical trials after approval is granted. He hopes to live to see his dream realized some three or four years down the road.
Sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kanzius machine;
http://60minutes.yahoo.com/segment/159/the_kanzius_machine
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