Tiny bubbles made by cells are being studied to carry cancer drugs
Original title: Extracellular vesicles in pharmacology: Innovations in drug delivery and therapeutic applications in cancer.
How far along is this research?
- Lab cells
- Animals
- Review
- Tested in people
This looks across many earlier studies rather than running a new one.
This is a summary of where the research stands, mostly lab work, not a treatment you can get.
The short version
Scientists are looking at tiny bubbles that cells release as a way to deliver cancer drugs.
What was studied. This is a review paper. The authors pulled together past research on extracellular vesicles, which are tiny bubbles that almost all cells release. They looked at work in breast, lung, colorectal, prostate and pancreatic cancer, and in glioblastoma: A glioma that is given grade 4, the highest grade. It grows fast. Treatment usually starts soon after it is found. It often means surgery, then radiation and chemotherapy. See the glossary.
What they found. Cells use these bubbles to send signals to each other. In cancer, the bubbles can help a tumor grow, spread, and get around the immune system. Because the bubbles show up in blood and other body fluids, doctors may be able to use them to find cancer early or check how a treatment is working. Researchers are also trying to fill the bubbles with cancer drugs and gene tools, hoping to hit the tumor with fewer effects on the rest of the body.
What this means, and what it doesn't
What it could mean: For now, this does not change any care you can get. It is a summary of where this area of science stands. The authors say most of the work is still in the lab, and only a few of these bubble treatments have reached trials in people.
What it doesn't mean: This is not a new treatment, and it is not a cure. No one should expect to ask for this at their next visit. It is a review of research, not a study that tested a drug in patients. The authors say plainly that moving this work into real care is still limited and hard. Any use in people is years away, if it happens at all.
Source: PubMed, September 2, 2026 · Read the original
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