Treatment of cancer by radiotherapy and nanoparticles coupled with Methotrexate drug

Abstract

Introduction: Cancer patients will receive Radiation therapy (RT) as part of their treatment as monotherapy or as part of a combination treatment. RT uses high-energy radiation such as photons and strong ions. Nanoparticles (NPs) are used for magnetic hyperthermia which increases the efficacy of RT and generates heat to kill cancer cells by destroying their DNA. Materials and Methods: NPs were prepared through the co-precipitation method and characterized using TEM, SEM, and X-ray diffractometer. 56 male mice were housed under the same environmental conditions. The animals injected into the right flank with 0.25mL from 106cells/mL Ehrlich tumor suspension. When tumors reach between 5-10mm in diameter, mice will be randomly divided into eight groups as follow,1stgroup: used as negative control group injected with 25μL phosphate buffer saline without treatment,2ndgroup:injected with Fe3O4-NPs,3rdgroup: injected with Fe2O3-NPs,4thgroup: injected with Methotrexate drug (MXT),5thgroup: injected with MXT, Fe3O4 and Fe2O3-NPs,6thgroup: as 5thgroup with microwave hyperthermia,7thgroup:as 5thgroup then treated with high energy photons and 8thgroup: as 5thgroup and exposed to electron beam therapy. Tumor volume and weight were measured after 15days.Tumor apoptosis was studied using histopathology and the tumor's side effects on biological systems were investigated. Results: The results indicate that the magnetic hyperthermia application is suitable for cancer treatment with microwave and linear accelerator treatment coupled with drugs. A significant decrease in tumor size, tumor necrosis and fibrosis were observed. Conclusion: It was found that Fe3O4 and Fe2O3-NPs coupled with MXT and exposed to electron beam therapy and microwave irradiation is the best method for cancer treatment.