The University of California, San Francisco and GE Healthcare have developed a new imaging technology based on a natural sugar that provides a non-invasive new method for accurately imaging tumors and observing the effects of cancer drug treatments. This technique uses a compound called pyruvate. Pyruvate is produced when glucose is broken down in the body, and it usually provides energy to cells. However, pyruvate is converted to another compound lactate more frequently in cancer.
Previous animal studies have confirmed that scientists use a technique called hyperpolarization to inject hyperpolarized pyruvate into the body and use magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to track the level of pyruvate converted to lactic acid. . Based on the amount of lactic acid produced and the conversion rate, the researchers were able to accurately detect the boundaries of tumors in mice, determine which cancers were the most aggressive, and track the tumor's early biochemical reactions in response to drug treatment long before physical changes occurred. Now scientists from the University of California, San Francisco and collaborators at GE Healthcare have conducted research on 31 patients and confirmed that this technology can be safely applied to humans and can effectively produce tumors in patients with prostate cancer. The results of these studies were published in the journal Science Translational Medicine on August 14.
Although this is the first human study to determine a safe dose and verify its effectiveness, it lays the foundation for using the technology to diagnose various cancers and track treatment in a non-invasive manner.
"We have now obtained a safe dose for patients, which is our main purpose," said Sarah J. Nelson, Ph.D., the lead author of the study and the director of the Surbeck Advanced Imaging Laboratory at the University of California, San Francisco, and professor of radiology.
"In animal models, the amount of lactic acid is directly related to the aggressiveness of cancer than the amount of pyruvate. We also have a lot of data to confirm that this value is reduced in cancer after treatment. This is a very common molecule and is customized for specific individuals. Treatment is of great significance. "Prostate cancer is the most common type of cancer. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than 200,000 new cases are reported in the United States each year. It is widely recognized that screening men for prostate-specific antigen (PSA) can identify more patients with prostate cancer at an earlier stage, which may be easier to cure. However, many of these tumors are growing slowly, and it is difficult to predict which of them is the case.
For oncologists, this real-time imaging can provide immediate feedback on whether patients should continue to actively monitor tumors or seek treatment, and whether a treatment is working in standard treatment or clinical trials. Dr. Eric Small, co-author of the paper, professor of medicine and urology at the University of California, San Francisco, and oncologist, said: "Any type of prostate cancer treatment, including radiation therapy and surgery, has natural risks. These risks can have a huge impact on the quality of life of patients. The impact of this technology is beginning to allow us to more accurately assess the actual extent and risk of cancer in individual patients, which is extremely important but is a medical need that has been largely unrealized so far. "
In this clinical study launched in December 2010, the researchers labeled pyruvate with carbon-13 and injected this "hyperpolarized pyruvate" imaging agent into the University of California, San Francisco Medical Center. And 31 prostate cancer patients in the Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center. The team then used MRI to track pyruvate and its conversion to lactic acid in prostate cancer. As in previous studies in mice, higher and stronger signals indicate that pyruvate is converted to lactic acid more quickly, which may be a sign of more aggressive cancers. In contrast, only a very limited transformation is detected in the normal prostate. The study specifically focused on patients with low-grade tumors who have not yet been treated, and determined the safe and appropriate dose of pyruvate required. Future research will use this technology to evaluate the effect of cancer treatment on shrinking patients' tumors, and with this knowledge doctors can assess the amount of chemotherapy needed by individuals.
Although it will take 5-10 years to enter potential commercial applications, the University of California, San Francisco has received funding to extend this technology to brain cancer, breast cancer, liver cancer, lymphoma, pancreatic cancer and prostate cancer patients. GE Healthcare has also developed equipment that can handle this hyperpolarized pyruvate in a general technical environment to facilitate broader clinical trials in the future.
Made of supreme quality EVA material, water resistant, moisture proofing and dust-proof.
Comfortable fuzzy lining, soft shock absorbing protection against minor bumps drops and shocks, reduce damages caused by accidentally bumping.
Durable metal zipper, smooth but strong 360.degree zipper, provides durability and a long-lasting performance.
Eva Violin Case,Eva Double Violin Case,Eva Portable Violin Case,Eva Waterproof Violin Case
Shenzhen Guohui Craft Products Co.,Ltd. , https://www.evacarrycase.com