Extracorporeal Blood Purification for Chemotherapy Toxicity
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current chemotherapy treatments face challenges such as drug resistance and toxicity due to the presence of extracellular vesicles like exosomes, which interfere with chemotherapy drug efficacy and distribute toxic drugs to off-target locations, leading to adverse events and treatment discontinuation.
Innovation Solution
The development of extracorporeal blood purification devices and methods that utilize adsorbents like activated carbon and non-ionic exchange resins to capture and remove chemotherapy drugs, their metabolites, and exosomes from the bloodstream, both before and after drug administration, to enhance drug delivery to tumor sites and reduce systemic toxicity.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If high doses of chemotherapy are administered to overcome drug resistance, then treatment efficacy is improved, but systemic toxicity and adverse events increase
Solution Approach 1:
The invention segments the chemotherapy treatment process into two distinct phases: (1) pre-chemotherapy plasma exchange to remove exosomes and reduce drug resistance, and (2) post-chemotherapy plasma exchange to remove toxic drugs from circulation. This temporal segmentation allows each phase to address specific aspects of the treatment challenge without interfering with the other.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention extracts harmful components from the patient's plasma through plasma exchange. Specifically, exosomes are removed before chemotherapy to reduce drug resistance, and chemotherapy drugs are removed after administration to reduce systemic toxicity. This extraction approach separates the harmful elements from the therapeutic process.
2Reliability
If chemotherapy drugs are distributed throughout the body to treat cancer, then treatment coverage is improved, but off-target toxicity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The invention performs preliminary plasma exchange before chemotherapy administration to remove exosomes that mediate drug resistance. This preliminary action prepares the patient's system to respond better to chemotherapy, potentially allowing for more effective targeted treatment while reducing the need for high systemic drug levels that cause off-target toxicity.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention implements a feedback mechanism where post-chemotherapy plasma exchange removes unmetabolized drugs and toxic metabolites from circulation. This feedback loop monitors and corrects the systemic drug levels after the therapeutic action has been delivered, preventing excessive accumulation in off-target tissues.
3Reliability
If plasma exchange is performed both before and after chemotherapy, then treatment optimization is improved, but procedural complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The invention uses the same plasma exchange device and procedure for both pre- and post-chemotherapy treatments. The plasma exchange system serves multiple functions: removing exosomes before chemotherapy, delivering the chemotherapy infusion, and removing toxic drugs after chemotherapy. This multi-functionality reduces the need for different specialized devices for each treatment phase.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This approach improves the efficacy of chemotherapy by reducing drug resistance and toxicity, allowing higher doses of chemotherapy to be administered safely, thereby improving treatment outcomes and quality of life for cancer patients by specifically targeting and removing exosomes and chemotherapy agents from the circulatory system.
Implementation Method 1
The invention provides extracorporeal devices for binding and capture of a chemotherapy drug
Implementation Method 2
a hollow fiber membrane filter configured to allow passage of plasma components having a size less than a pore size of the hollow fiber membrane
Data Source
AI summary
Despite therapeutic advances in the field of oncology, treatment toxicity, drug resistance, and inadequate tumor site delivery restrict the benefit of cancer chemotherapy regimens. Disclosed are extracorporeal devices comprising adsorbent components that are suitable for treating a subject prior to and following administration of a dose of a chemotherapy drug, wherein the devices are configured to remove circulating factors comprising a chemotherapy drug from blood or plasma. Also disclosed herein are methods of reducing the bloodstream presence of circulating factors that mediate drug resistance, drug toxicity, and cancer metastasis, wherein circulating factors include without limitation, tumor-derived and/or chemotherapy-induced extracellular vesicles or exosomes.