Rates of pancreatic disease – including cancer and diabetes – are rising, with pancreatic cancer now the third leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the U.S. But what’s even more troubling is that the trends show these diseases affecting Americans at younger and younger ages.
The need for innovative treatment options is urgent, and one possible breakthrough is happening right now at ÐÔÊӽ紫ý.
A research team led by ÐÔÊӽ紫ý chemistry professor Chandra Bhattacharya is pioneering techniques to deliver more direct treatments for pancreatic diseases using unique mRNA delivery systems.
The team’s work shows the potential to achieve intravenous mRNA delivery to the pancreas – an organ difficult to treat intravenously – with an unprecedented level of selectivity. Such pinpoint delivery would mean lower doses of medicine delivered directly where it needs to go, potentially reducing side-effects and lowering long-term treatment costs.
Professor Bhattacharya and her team are also pursuing pathways for organ-specific drug delivery to other parts of the body, and she recently became ÐÔÊӽ紫ý’s first-ever recipient of an early-stage investigator grant award from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences to further her important work.
I invite you to read more about this exciting innovation, which highlights the power and potential of research universities like ÐÔÊӽ紫ý to advance life-changing technologies and improve the human condition in our community and beyond.
Warm wishes,
Chris Heavey
ÐÔÊӽ紫ý Interim President