Therapeutic efficacy of ferrofluid bound anticancer agent

Ch. Alexiou¹ - W. Arnold¹ - P. Hulin¹ - R. Klein¹ - A. Schmidt¹ - Ch. Bergemannand² - F. G. Parak³

¹ Department of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Klinikum rechts der Isar, Technical University of Munich, 81675 Munich
² Chemicell, 10777 Berlin
³ Physics-Department E 17, Technical University of Munich, 81675 Munich, Germany

Abstract
Ferrofluids coated with starch polymers can be used as biocompatible carriers in a new field of locoregional tumor therapy called "magnetic drug targeting". Bound to medical drugs, such magnetic nanoparticles can be enriched in a desired body compartment using an external magnetic field. In the present study, we confirm the concentration of ferrofluids in VX2 squamous cell carcinoma tissue of the rabbit using histological investigations and MR imaging. The therapeutic efficacy of "magnetic drug targeting" was studied using the rabbit VX2 squamous cell carcinoma model. Mitoxantrone coupled ferrofluids were injected intraarterially into the artery supplying the tumor (femoral artery). The magnetic field (1.7 Tesla) was focused to the tumor placed at the medial portion of the hind limb of New Zealand White rabbits. Complete tumor remissions could be seen without any negative side effects by using only 20\% of the normal systemic dosage of the chemotherapeutic agent mitoxantrone. Figs 3, Refs 14.