Barbara Labella

Technological and socio-economic implications in the development of implantable drug infusion systems for cancer therapy in tricky anatomic compartments: the case of brain tumours

Effective administration of chemotherapeutics to the brain is a difficult task because of several reasons, including the anatomic location and the presence of the brain-to-blood barrier. The socio-economic burden of the pathology, discussed in the first part of the paper, stimulates the development of specific drug delivery systems, briefly reviewed and critically evaluated in a future perspective. Special emphasis is given to a solution under development at University Campus Bio-Medico (UCBM), which is compared to alternative approaches proposed in literature. Eventually, a technological roadmap is outlined and the related potential socio-economic impact is briefly discussed.