Tumor Paint Makes Tumors Glow

Apr-10-15 Researchers have developed a "tumor paint" derived from scorpion venom that could make it easier for surgeons to remove brain tumors without harming surrounding tissue.

Currently, surgeons must rely on their own eyes and fingers to determine if a bit of tissue is a tumor, but this human-based method is flawed. To provide a more effective method, researchers at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center in Seattle created the tumor paint by combining a protein from scorpion venom that will bind to cancer cells with a non-toxic compound that glows under near-infrared light.

Early test have been promising—the compound is able to safely penetrate the blood-brain barrier and cause the tumor cells to glow, and the team hopes the paint could also eventually be used on other kinds of tumors.

Image: An image of a mouse brain tumor under near-infrared light. The blue-green glow in the upper right quadrant is the tumor, labeled with tumor paint

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[POPSCI.COM]
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