A Proposal to Research TREATMENT OF BREAST TUMORS USING GOLD NANOPARTICLES Ben W. EPD 397 Professor Nicometo October 9th 2008

In 2007 there were 7.4 million deaths worldwide due to cancer [1]. Figure 1: 2-cm tumor in breast tissue [2]

Colloidal gold is a promising vehicle for new treatment options . On the nano scale (10-9 m) Exhibits unique properties Figure 2: Colloidal Gold [3]

Gold nanoparticles are easy to produce and exhibit unique characteristics over other options. 10 µm 100 nm 1 nm

Because of their photothermal properties, they are easy to monitor and direct in the body. Plasmon Resonance Figure 3: Vibration of electron cloud [4] Figure 4: Extinction spectrum for Au nanorods [5]

I propose to research: Targeting of Tumor Cells Breast Cancer outcomes Active Passive Breast Cancer outcomes Safety of this treatment

My sources offer much information on the topic, from reputable resources.

With this research, I hope to shed light on the potential of this treatment.

Sources [1] Dunham, “Report Sees 7.6 Million global cancer deaths,” Reuters, Dec 17th 2008, <http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSN1633064920071217> [2] “Breast Cancer,” www.wikipedia.org, (listed as free domain) [3] Reinhart, “Metospheric Plasma Products”, http://colloidalgoldmachines- central.com/Sales/Sales1.html [4] Kelley, Coronado, Zhao, Schatz, “The Optical Properties of Metal Nanoparticles,” Journal of Physical Chemistry B, no 107 (2003). [5] Huff, Tong, Zhao, Hansen, Cheng, Wei, “Hyperthermic Effects of Gold Nanorods on Tumor Cells,” Nanomedicine 2, no 1 (2007): 125-132. www.futuremedicine.com [6] Cuenca, Jiang, Hochwald, Delano, Cance, Grobmyer, “Emerging Implications of Nanotechnology on Cancer Diagnostics and Therapeutics,” Cancer 107, no 3 (2006). <doi.wiley.com>