Treatment for small tumours typically less than five centimeters which are considered inoperable or poor candidates for traditional treatments, will now be made available to patients, as a breakthrough electrical technology called ‘NanoKnife’ is set to be launched at the Rajiv Gandhi Cancer Institute and Research Centre (RGCI&RC).
NanoKnife is a minimally invasive cancer treatment that uses irreversible ‘electroporation technology’ to precisely target and kill hard-to-reach tumours at the cellular level. The precision of the NanoKnife allows interventional radiologists to treat tumours that in the past would be virtually impossible for surgeons to operate on due to their location.
This announcement was made at the three-day RGCON 2013, one of the biggest oncology congresses of its kind held in Delhi where almost 600 oncologists from across the world participated to discuss changing trends in colorectal cancer treatment.
Dr Shivendra Singh, Sr Consultant and Chief of GI Onco Surgery and Liver Transplant Services, RGCI & RC said, “The Nanoknife is able to target especially small tumours, typically less than 5 cm in size and difficult tumours which cannot be removed because of their critical location, or those that have not responded to conventional treatment.”
Developed by AngioDynamics, USA, the device costs about Rs 15 crore. According to RGCI&RC, its procurement is in an advanced stage of negotiation. The technology would be installed at the hospital as early as June this year and treatment could cost about Rs 3-4 lakh per patient.
Explaining the procedure, Dr Swarupa Mitra, Consultant, Radiation Oncology, RGCI & RC said, “With the help of NanoKnife technology, doctors can remove cancerous tumours non-invasively using only three needle-like electrodes or probes, a computer and a powerful burst of electricity, rather than using surgery or a transplant. NanoKnife technology applies a series of quick bursts of electrical energy through electrodes that are inserted directly into and around the tumour and destroy it, leaving the surrounding tissue, veins, nerves and ducts unaffected. Healthy cells and tissue can then grow back and regenerate within the area.”
NanoKnife is different from other treatments like CyberKnife and traditional surgery in that the procedure can be done painlessly and success can be evaluated much more quickly. Because the Nanoknife technology doesn’t get hot like other procedures, it can be used to treat the mass without burning nearby tissue and organs. If necessary, the procedure can be repeated.
NanoKnife is not really a knife at all, as the name implies, but a new use of nanotechnology – the science of dealing with particles and dimensions down to the atomic level. It uses technology called irreversible electroporation, a process in which microsecond bursts of electrical pulses are delivered with military precision to irreversibly damage the cell membrane of cancer cells while sparing healthy tissue from harm. A series of 90 electrical pulses are delivered between the probes, opening tiny pores in the cancer cell membranes and, in effect, killing them.
EH News Bureau
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