Plasmonic gold nanostars for synergistic photoimmunotherapy to treat cancer.

Cancer is the second leading cause of death and there is an urgent need to improve cancer management. We have developed an innovative cancer therapy named Synergistic Immuno Photothermal Nanotherapy (SYMPHONY) by combining gold nanostars (GNS)-mediated photothermal ablation with checkpoint inhibitor immunotherapy. Our previous studies have demonstrated that SYMPHONY photoimmunotherapy not only treats the primary tumor but also dramatically amplifies anticancer immune responses in synergy with checkpoint blockade immunotherapy to treat remote and unresectable cancer metastasis. The SYMPHONY treatment also induces a 'cancer vaccine' effect leading to immunologic memory and prevents cancer recurrence in murine animal models. This manuscript provides an overview of our research activities on the SYMPHONY therapy with plasmonic GNS for cancer treatment.

Duke Scholars

Author Smita K Nair Surgery, Surgical Sciences

Author Paolo F Maccarini Electrical and Computer Engineering

Author Gregory M. Palmer Radiation Oncology

Author Tuan Vo-Dinh Biomedical Engineering