Ahmet Dirican, Professor of Medical Oncology at Medicana International İzmir Hospital, shared a post by News from Science, adding:
“Nanoplastics are no longer just an environmental issue. In recent years, these particles have been detected in:
- human blood
- lungs
- placenta
- and even the brain.
Their potential links to cancer biology through chronic inflammation, oxidative stress, and cellular damage are increasingly being investigated. What makes this report especially interesting is the development of magnetic “nanobots” capable of removing nanoplastics from water. This also raises another fascinating question: Could similar nanobot technologies one day become effective tools in cancer treatment?
Perhaps in the future we will increasingly discuss nanotechnological systems capable of:
- delivering drugs directly into the tumor microenvironment,
- detecting micrometastatic disease,
- or even helping eliminate disease at the MRD level.”
Quoting News from Science‘s post:
“The better humans have gotten at making plastic, the more challenging it has been to unmake it—especially the pieces too small to see.
Long after plastic bottles and bags break down, they keep fragmenting into particles so tiny, conventional filtration can’t touch them. They drift through treatment plants and into waterways unimpeded. There, they enter the food chain, and ultimately the body, where they have been found in human organs and are increasingly linked to various diseases such as cancer.
Enter nanobots. In a new study, researchers show that tiny magnetic machines made of cagelike materials can tumble through water, sweeping up nanoplastics via the same electrostatic attraction that makes a balloon cling to your hair.
Other articles featuring Ahmet Dirican on OncoDaily.