For millennia, gold has been used in everything from jewelry to coinage, but scientists have found a new and unexpected use for it, which is to treat cancer, one of mankind’s most notorious diseases.

How Does The Treatment Work?

Golden nanoparticles, which are small enough to enter the human body, are tagged with small levels of radiation which allow them to be traced. The nanoparticle will then deliver the drug directly into cancerous cells. While the usage of gold in medicine is not a new phenomenon, as it has been used for years, additional research has shed new insights into its capabilities.

Cancer comes in many forms, and is one of the leading causes of death worldwide. Many have become frustrated with the scientific community because despite decades of research and hundreds of billions invested, no cure has been found. One of the biggest challenges in cancer treatment is ensuring that only cancerous cells are targeted, without injuring healthy cells.

Traditional cancer treatments such as chemotherapy are not that efficient because the patient will often become sick from the radiation, so scientists have been looking for a way to specifically target cancer cells with a higher degree of precision.

Why Gold Is The Precious Metal of Choice

Oxford researchers have been focusing on a new method of drug transport, where it enters the “control room” for cancerous cells which hold the chromosomes. The specific molecule which is targeted is telomerase, which is responsible for building protective caps near the chromosome ends which are referred to as telomeres.

Within most bodily cells, telomeres function as timers which are built in to ensure the cell doesn’t live beyond the expiration date. When cells divide, telomeres will shorten every time, and once it reaches the crucial length, the cell won’t divide anymore, resulting in cell death. Cancerous cells, however, can bypass this safety mechanism through the reactivation of telomerase, which is what causes them to grow uncontrollably.

Gold has been selected because its nanoparticles have demonstrated the ability to be absorbed by cells, which allow them to safely distribute drugs which normally would be blocked. Through the engineering of golden nanoparticles and the addition of radioactive tracers, the drugs were able to reach specific targets while deactivating telomerase, which halted the cancer’s growth.

Why The Radioactive Tracer Is Needed

The purpose of the radioactive tracer is to track and monitor the nanoparticles. While radiation is normally dangerous to humans, when provided in very small dosages the human body can tolerate it. The radioactivity will also be sufficient to kill cancerous cells. The results of these studies have created excitement among both scientists and the general public, because for the first time the medical community might have a technique that can be used to target cancers of all types, including tumors which will also be eradicated through the delivery of the lethal payload.