Thermoresponsive polymers as promising new materials for local radiotherapy

We describe a novel thermoresponsive polymeric drug delivery system based on poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) with isotopically labellable end groups [L-tyrosinamide or diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid (DTPA)] designed for local radiotherapy. The polymers are readily soluble in isotonic aqueous sodium chloride at room temperature and the phase separation is complete at body temperature as proved by DSC measurements. Sufficent binding capacity for radionuclides and chemical stability are demonstrated on I-125 and Y-90-labelled polymers. (c) 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.