Place a small device under the skin and a catheter connected to a large vein in the chest; keep this device for several months at the cost of some discomfort and risk of infection; keep a scar to remind you of those hard times… The use of an implantable port is necessary for most chemotherapy, but this restrictive procedure is expensive and complicates the lives of both patients and caregivers. What if we could simplify things?
There are several oral chemotherapeutics available, but this type of formulation particularly poses problems with bioavailability (the fraction of the active principle that actually reaches the bloodstream is highly variable from one patient to another and from one dose to another within the same patient).
As for subcutaneous injection, it has so far resisted the irritant and blistering properties of most anticancer molecules, as well as the hydrophobic properties that promote skin ulceration or even necrosis…
Source: Le Figaro
