'Nanobots' can search and destroy cancer cells in major breakthrough for patients

dailystar.co.uk:

cancer cell's outer surface and then kill the cell from the inside.The nanoparticles powering the machines are made of gold, and repeatedly fold and unfold while inside a cell to destroy it—without any harmful anti-cancer drugs or medication required.Dr Youngdo Jeong, one of the leading scientists behind the research, said it "could be a new alternative to overcome the side effects of existing chemotherapy."The development marks yet another breakthrough for cancer treatment this month.

A dozen rectal cancer patients in the US all saw their cancer disappear after going through experimental immunotherapy. The patients all received a dose of a drug called dostarlimab every three weeks over six months, which successfully treated all of them without the need for chemotherapy, radiation therapy or surgery.A doctor behind the research, Dr Luis Diaz Jr, said it was the first time a treatment 'completely' got rid of cancer in patients."I believe this is the first time this has happened in the history of cancer," he said.

The drug worked by supercharging patients' immune systems, enabling them to easily recognise and attack cancer cells. Meanwhile, American scientists successfully destroyed liver tumours in rats using a 'gamechanging' ultrasound treatment—again with no surgery needed.

The technique, called histotripsy, is already being tested in human clinical trials, and can destroy cancer tissue with a high degree of precision using micro-second long pulses of ultrasound waves.