Technological and socio-economic implications in the development of implantable drug infusion systems for cancer therapy in tricky anatomic compartments: the case of brain tumours. (1st October 2010)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Petroni, Silvia; Accoto, Dino; Labella, Barbara; Turchetti, Giuseppe; , Eugenio Guglielmelli
• Is Part Of: International journal of biomedical engineering and technology. Volume 4:Number 4(2010)
• Page Start: 297
• Page End: 314
• Publication Date: 2010-10-01
• Subjects: implantable drug delivery systems -- brain tumours -- cancer treatment -- chemotherapeutics -- socio-economic impact -- technological implications; Biomedical engineering -- Periodicals; 610.28
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1752-6418

Abstract

Effective administration of chemotherapeutics to the brain is a difficult task because of several reasons, including the anatomic location and the presence of the brain-to-blood barrier. The socio-economic burden of the pathology, discussed in the first part of the paper, stimulates the development of specific drug delivery systems, briefly reviewed and critically evaluated in a future perspective. Special emphasis is given to a solution under development at University Campus Bio-Medico (UCBM), which is compared to alternative approaches proposed in literature. Eventually, a technological roadmap is outlined and the related potential socio-economic impact is briefly discussed.