Cancer treatment ‘shocks’ tumours into submission

Irish researchers who developed a groundbreaking cancer treatment which “shocks” tumours into absorbing massive doses of chemotherapy have won an innovation award.

The pioneering team from the Cork Cancer Research Centre were presented with the top Pfizer UCC Innovation Through Teamwork award at a ceremony in UCC this week.

The team devised a new form of cancer treatment which involves delivering a powerful electrical pulse directly to the site of a tumour. The impact of the electrical pulse makes the tumour temporarily porous, allowing it absorb up to 1,000 times the amount of chemotherapy medication normally delivered to a tumour.