Chemotherapy vs Nano Anti-Cancer Drugs: Efficacy and Side Effects

This assignment provides a comparative analysis of chemotherapy and nano anti-cancer drugs, highlighting their respective advantages and disadvantages in cancer treatment. Chemotherapy's pros include systemic exposure to tumor cells, leading to tumor volume reduction and improved clinical outcomes, as well as the possibility for intermediate prognosis assessment post-induction therapy. However, it also presents cons such as alloplasia, immunocompromised conditions, and systemic toxicity. Nano anti-cancer drugs offer improved bioavailability by diffusing around tumor cells and bypassing first-pass metabolism, avoiding blood serum and protein interaction, and increasing drug concentration at the site. Conversely, their cons include tissue accumulation leading to toxicity, protein aggregation inside cells, and potential damage to the nervous and immune systems. The primary difference lies in nanotherapy's improved efficiency and beneficial pharmacokinetic effects, such as higher concentration near tumor cells, decreased metabolism, and increased bioavailability, though chemotherapy is more established with significant evidence for safe and effective clinical outcomes. Desklib provides access to similar assignments and study resources for students.

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The pros of chemotherapy include systemic exposure to the tumor cells, leading to reduction in
tumor volume and improves the clinical outcomes. The advantage also include possibility for
intermediate assessment regarding the prognosis, such as post induction therapy. On the other
hand, cons include side effects such as alloplasia, immunocompromised condition and systemic
toxicity. The pros of nano anti-cancer drug is that, it diffuses around the tumor cells and can
bypass the first pass metabolism, thereby increasing the bioavailability (Garrett, 2016). Also,
drugs in the nanoparticles do not come in contact with blood, thereby avoids blood serum and
protein interaction, and increases the maximum concentration of drug at site. The cons include
accumulation of nanoparticle in tissues leading to toxicity and it can cause protein aggregation
inside the cells and hence can cause side effects. Other side effects includes damage to nervous
system and immune system of body (Demetzos, Pippa & Pispas, 2017).
The primary difference between the nano and chemotherapies is that, nano therapy have
improved efficiency. Moreover the beneficial pharmacokinetic effects in nano therapy includes
high concentration near the tumor cells, decreased metabolism and increased bioavailability,
compared to that of chemotherapy in cancer. However, the chemotherapy has been significantly
established for treatment of cancer, and there exist many evidences for safe and effective clinical
outcomes. In contrary the recent development in nanotherapy is at its preliminary stage
(Demetzos, et al. 2017).
References:
Demetzos, C., Pippa, N., & Pispas, S. (2017). Advances and Perspectives in Cancer
Nanotherapy: The Added-Value of Nanocarriers. Current Nanomedicine (Formerly: Recent
Patents on Nanomedicine), 7(3), 170-190.
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Assignment Name Student ID
Garrett, L. (2016). Chemotherapy principles. In BSAVA Congress Proceedings 2016 (pp. 62-63).
BSAVA Library.
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