A recent study shows heating malignant tumors could improve treatments for mesothelioma and other cancers. <br /> <br />Researchers in France successfully softened malignant tumors by heating them, a process known as nanohyperthermia, which altered the collagen fibers and reduced the rigidity and volume of the tumors, making them more susceptible to chemotherapy and other therapeutic treatments. <br /> <br />Malignant tumors, such as those found in mesothelioma patients, demonstrate a mechanical resistance to standard treatments, hindering efforts to defeat cancers. Stiffening is a characteristic of cancer cells, and one that may help the cells proliferate and metastasize. <br /> <br />Researchers at the Centre national de la recherche scientifique (CNRS), the French National Institute of Health and Medical Research (INSERM), Paris Descartes University and Paris Diderot University published the study Jan. 1 in the journal Theranostics. <br /> <br />“Nanohyperthermia was demonstrated to improve drug transport and tumor accumulation due to an increase of blood flow and interstitial extravasation,” lead researcher Iris Marangon wrote in the study.
