Basal Cell Carcinoma (BCC)

BCC is the most common form of skin cancer - comprising 80% of all new diagnoses.  They appear as

  • A sore that does not heal.
  • Areas of the skin that are:
  • Raised, smooth, shiny, and look pearly.
  • Firm and look like a scar, and may be white, yellow, or waxy.
  • Raised, and red or reddish-brown.
  • Scaly, bleeding or crusty.

Over 2 1/2 million new cases of BCC are diagnosed in the United States each year.

BCC is related to the amount of UV light skin exposure that you have received throughout your lifetime and predominately are found on the face, neck and arms.

The majority of BCC tumors are currently removed with surgery.

"Cancer that begins in the lower part of the epidermis (the outer layer of the skin). It may appear as a small white or flesh-colored bump that grows slowly and may bleed. Basal cell carcinomas are usually found on areas of the body exposed to the sun. Basal cell carcinomas rarely metastasize (spread) to other parts of the body. They are the most common form of skin cancer. Also called basal cell cancer."  

For more information about skin cancer, see the National Institutes of Health site, here. 

 
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Targeting

We target the GNR by binding antibodies specific to BCC to the gold nanoparticles.  The binding can be visualized with fluorescence (seen as the red lighted sites in the upper right photo).  If the incorrect antibody is used, there are no red lighted sites (upper left image).   This way, only BCC cells will be bound with the GNR and exposed to the majority of the laser heating. 

 
 
 
 
 

Treatment

In a pilot study of hairless mice injected with BCC cells, the tumors were allowed to grow to a consistent size. The targeted GNR are injected into the tumors of a group of mice and allowed to bind overnight.

Laser energy is applied for less than one minute.

At 30 days, mice with both the GNR and Laser applications saw a complete removal of their skin cancer.   Mice without treatment or mice with only laser treatment retained tumors.  

This is an exciting advancement in the ability to remove tumors with laser energy, allowing less energy to be used, more targeting, more effective, less painful, and non-scaring.