The Therapeutic Effect of Acoustic Cavitation on Breast Carcinoma Tumor Model in BALB/c Mice in the Presence of Gold Nanoparticles

Acoustic cavitation, which occurs at high intensities of ultrasound waves, can be fatal for tumor cells. On the other hand, the existence of nanoparticles in a liquid decreases the acoustic cavitation onset threshold. In this study, the combined effects of ultrasound and gold nanoparticles on breast carcinoma tumor model in BALB/c mice were studied.

The tumor-bearing mice were divided into 4 groups of control, gold nanoparticles, ultrasound, and ultrasound in the presence of gold nanoparticles. Therapeutic effects on tumors were evaluated by measuring relative tumor volume, doubling time, and 5-folding time for tumor volume.

The 5-folding time showed a significant difference between ultrasound in the presence of the gold nanoparticles and the other groups. The maximum doubling and 5-folding times were found in the ultrasound in the presence of gold nanoparticles group.

 Combined effects of ultrasound and gold nanoparticles can be used as a method for increasing the efficiency of the treatment of carcinoma tumors.