CHENNAI: Researchers from the Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT-M), in collaboration with Monash University and Deakin University in Australia, have developed a nanoinjection-based drug delivery platform that could significantly improve safety and effectiveness of breast cancer treatment, said an official statement.

Breast cancer remains one of the leading causes of cancer-related deaths among women worldwide, with conventional chemotherapy possibly damaging healthy tissues due to systemic drug exposure.

Addressing this challenge, the international research team has engineered a silicon nanotube-based nanoinjection system that delivers chemotherapy drugs directly into cancer cells, minimising side effects and enhancing precision.

The platform combines thermally-stable nanoarchaeosomes, which are tiny lipid-based carriers capable of encapsulating anticancer drugs, with vertically-aligned silicon nanotubes etched onto a silicon wafer. Using this approach, the commonly used chemotherapy drug doxorubicin is injected straight into cancer cells.

Laboratory studies demonstrated that the Nanoarchaeosome-Doxorubicin-Silicon Nanotube (NAD-SiNT) system showed strong cytotoxic effects against MCF-7 breast cancer cells while sparing healthy fibroblast cells, the statement said.

Unlike carbon- or titanium-based nanoinjection systems, silicon nanotubes are inherently biocompatible and non-toxic, making the platform more suitable for clinical translation. The findings have been published in the peer-reviewed journal Advanced Materials Interfaces, it added.

Swathi Sudhakar of IIT-M said the technology could be transformative for low- and middle-income countries by reducing treatment costs and improving patients’ quality of life.