Electrically mediated drug delivery for treating subcutaneous and orthotopic pancreatic adenocarcinoma in a hamster model

Background: Current therapies for pancreatic adenocarcinoma only benefit a fraction of those diagnosed with this disease. New strategies for improving treatment are clearly needed. This study investigated the use of electrica lly mediated drug delivery for the treatment of pancreatic adenocarcinoma i n a hamster model. Materials and Methods: Hamster PC-I pancreatic adenocarc inoma cells and Golden Syrian hamsters were used as a model. Results: In vi tro testing indicated that bleomycin was more effective than Cisplatin and Doxorubicin when delivered using pulsed electric fields. Treatment of subcu taneous tumors with bleomycin and electric fields resulted in a 100 percent complete response rate. No effect was observed when either drug or pulses were used alone. Treatment of tumors induced in the gland resulted in a 25 percent complete response rate. Conclusions: Electrochemotherapy was highly effective for subcutaneous tumors. There was also a significant antitumor effect for the more complex and clinically relevant intraoperaive treatment of tumors in the pancreas.