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innovation and technology

INNOVATION AND TECHNOLOGY

FROM NANOTECHNOLOGY TO NANOTHERAPEUTICS:
IMPROVING ANTICANCER CHEMOTHERAPY

Fig. 1. Uncontrolled dissemination of anticancer in the body post-administration.

ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR DR KIEW LIK VOON DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACOLOGY,
FACULTY OF MEDICINE, UNIVERSITY OF MALAYA
PROFESSOR DR CHUNG LIP YONG DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACY, FACULTY OF
MEDICINE, UNIVERSITY OF MALAYA
ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR DR YEONG CHAI HONG SCHOOL OF MEDICINE (MEDICAL
PHYSICS), FACULTY OF HEALTH AND MEDICAL SCIENCES, TAYLOR’S UNIVERSITY

he applications of nanotechnology in Chemotherapeutic drugs are low molecular
Tour daily living are vast, spanning over a weight cytotoxic drugs that destroy tumour
number of sectors including food, medicine, tissue through several mechanisms that
consumer appliances, electronics, civil, interfere with cellular functions and cell
military, etc. According to BBC Research, replication, and they have been routinely used
the global nanotechnology market may for curative, adjuvant or palliative treatments
reach $90.5 billion by 2021 at a compound of cancer of all stages. However, the effective
annual growth rate of 18.2% from present. use of anticancer drugs is often hampered by
In the field of medicine, the application of their low therapeutic indices because of their
nanotechnology in improving the efficacy and uncontrolled dissemination in the body post-
safety of anticancer chemotherapeutic drugs administration (Figure 1). Such undesirable
is rapidly expanding. drug dissemination reduces the amount of drug

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