Research showed that the device remained fully functional for up to 70 days, with zero implant-related complications.

Researchers based at the University of Galway have developed a new implant that could better deliver next-generation therapies for ovarian cancer.

The project was carried out by a team at Cúram, the Research Ireland Centre for Medical Devices based at the Galway university, along with collaborators from the University of Minnesota, Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the Wyss Institute.

The implant, made out of a flexible biomaterial, conforms to the body’s internal contours and sits inside the peritoneal cavity – the space surrounding a woman’s abdominal organs – where ovarian cancer predominantly occurs. The porous material allows medicines to diffuse into the tissue surrounding the affected area.

The device is also connected to an external port through the skin, meaning therapies can be added as often as needed without further surgery or intrusion, and allows for continuous monitoring to see how the disease responds. The team’s research was published earlier this year in the scientific journal Device.

“One of the most frustrating aspects of treating ovarian cancer is that we know localised delivery of therapy works better, but the tools we’ve had until now weren’t built for the job,” said Dr Aoibhín Sheedy, a PhD graduate with Cúram and the lead researcher on the project.

“We designed this implant with ovarian cancer patients in mind. We wanted an implant that can deliver living cell therapies repeatedly, reliably and with real precision to the tumour site.”

Ovarian cancer is often diagnosed at late stages, the researchers say, with treatment often involving surgeries to remove as much of the tumour as possible. Currently, targeted treatment and ways to detect the cancer’s reoccurrence is impossible, they add.

Preclinical research was able to demonstrate that the team’s device remained fully functional for up to 70 days, with zero implant-related complications compared to conventional treatments. The team thinks that the device can deliver a range of living cell- or non-cell-based therapies.

“The tricky part about working with novel therapies, such as immunotherapies, in the setting of ovarian cancer is that repeated delivery is done with outdated materials that are not designed for this setting,” said Dr Martin Felices, a project team member and associate professor in medicine at the University of Minnesota.

Dr Eimear Dolan’s lab at the University of Galway developed the delivery system for the implant. She is an associate professor in biomedical engineering at the university.

“What excites us most is the two-way nature of this approach,” Dolan said. “Clinicians could use this to track how the immune cells are performing, whether the tumour is responding, and then adapt treatment accordingly.

“That kind of real-time intelligence is something we’ve never had access to before in this setting.”

Felices added: “The delivery system, created by Dr Dolan’s laboratory, allows for safer repeated delivery of cellular and biologic therapies in the context of the peritoneal cavity.”

Last year, €28m was set aside to fund the second phase of Ireland’s largest cancer research programme, involving top universities, charities and industrial partners.

Funding from the programme and other sources has helped researchers in the country make numerous advancements in the field in recent months, including identifying specific enzymes that lead to better treatment outcomes and developing compounds capable of damaging cancer cell DNA.

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