Challenges in delivery of drugs

MEDI 4

W. Mark Saltzman, Biomedical Engineering, Biomedical Engineering, Yale University, 15 Prospect St., New Haven, CT 06520
An impressive number of new medicines have been discovered during the twentieth century, so that some fatal diseases are now in control. Still, premature death and disability from cancer and infectious disease remain world-wide health problems. In some situations, these diseases progress in the presence of effective medication or preventative vaccines, simply because active agents are not administered in an effective manner. Modern engineering presents new opportunities in therapeutics: engineering analysis is essential in understanding the mechanisms of drug transport in normal and diseased tissue. In addition, new materials, such as biocompatible polymers, can be used to produce drug delivery systems that control the rate of delivery, local transport, and metabolism of drugs at tissue sites.