400 drugs to treat cancer are at an experimental stage

Nanotech-based transactions in medicine may touch $500 b by 2027, say experts

Bengaluru, March 7: Nanotechnology-based transactions in medicine is likely to touch $500 billion by 2027, according to senior researcher Dr. Jyotsnendu Giri.

Addressing a session on Monday at the “Bengaluru India Nano Summit 2022” here, Dr. Giri said it is possible to use nanotechnology effectively in medical science. He said the use of nanotechnology will help in the easy diagnosis and detection of diseases.

In his presentation on ‘Translation of Neuroinflammation-Targeted Nanomedicines,’ Dr. Giri said nanotechnology will play a decisive role in all sectors and change people’s lives in a few years. He said at present nanomedicines and treatments which are at initial testing stages are expensive and complex adding that it is necessary to simplify the processes.

Dr. Giri said there are 400 cancer drugs based on nanotechnology which are at the experimental stage out of which tests on 50 such drugs have been successful. In a few years, nanotechnology will help in popularising gene therapy and protein therapy among others, he said, adding that at present they were at various stages of research and development.

Dr. Giri also called upon the need for the government to simplify the rules and regulations governing the use of nanotechnology-based medicines failing which, he added would remain unaffordable to the citizens.

In his presentation on Translation of Neuroinflammation-Targeted Nanomedicines, Prof. Rangaramanujam Kannan of John Hopkins Hospital said it is enough to prescribe just one milligram of a drug to kill 10 lakh cancer-affected cells using nanotechnology. He said modern medicine was fraught with side effects and has reached alarming proportions. However, the use of nanotechnology will help in the removal of unexpected incidents before even administering such drugs, he added.

In her presentation on ‘Engineering New Materials for Healthcare: A Chemist’s Perspective’, Dr. Neetu Singh of IIT Delhi explained various research and development activities that are being carried out at her institution.