Researcher at the Marqués de Valdecilla Research Institute (IDIVAL) and Professor at the University of Cantabria (UC), Mónica López Fanarraga, will deliver the lecture Nanorobots for the Medicine of the Future on Wednesday, August 20, at the Casa de Cultura Doctor Velasco in Laredo, as part of the UC Summer Courses. The talk, which is free to attend, will address the latest advances in nanomedicine applied to diseases such as cancer, Alzheimer’s and COVID-19.
In her talk, López Fanarraga will present the most recent progress in the field of nanomedicine, a discipline that is opening new opportunities in the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of highly complex diseases including cancer, Alzheimer’s and COVID-19.
According to the expert, nanorobots are tiny particles, comparable in size to a virus, capable of precisely recognizing the tissue they are directed to and releasing the necessary therapy only there. This could help reduce the side effects of treatments such as chemotherapy while improving their effectiveness.
From the laboratory to society
Although clinical application may still take several years to reach hospitals, the Nanomedicine team at IDIVAL and the University of Cantabria is already working on prototypes with very promising results. In this regard, they recently published in the journal Small a pioneering advance in the treatment of malignant melanoma, based on nanoparticles capable of releasing chemotherapy selectively at the tumor site, avoiding damage to healthy tissue.
You can read more about this research in the news article published on our website: Targeted chemotherapy: Nanoparticles that attack tumors without harming healthy tissue.
Research with impact in Cantabria
In addition to her research work, López Fanarraga leads the Nanomedicine group at IDIVAL, which promotes and develops innovation in the biosanitary field of Cantabria, with its hub at the Marqués de Valdecilla University Hospital.
Her lecture in Laredo will be the tenth in the cultural cycle of the UC Summer Courses and will be presented by Rosa Martín, Area Director of the courses. Admission is free until full capacity is reached.
Cover photo: Mónica López Fanarraga (left) with part of her research group at IDIVAL.
Inside photo: Poster of the event.
