Diamonds in Industry

Although we work with all sorts of extraordinary gemstones in our commissioned engagement rings, diamonds are really our most popular stone. But did you know that diamonds are not just pretty sparkly things to adorn the body, but they’re also used in industry? They are very hard (10 on the Mohs scale) and this makes them very useful in cutting instruments.

Now, though, it seems that diamonds could be making their way into medical use too, as a study by researchers in Northwestern University, Illinois, shows that they could potentially be used in cancer treatment.

Their study demonstrates a technique of attaching chemotherapy drugs to the surface of tiny carbon particles to deliver the drug more effectively to hard-to-treat cancers. The carbon particles (known as nanodiamonds) are between 2 and 8 nanometers in diameter and have a similar basic octahedral structure to what you see in larger diamonds like those you see in jewellery, but with a more truncated structure. The facetted surfaces of the particle possess different properties, so a drug can be attached to a neutrally charged surface.

The nanodiamonds are non-toxic and do not cause inflammation, so (in my non-scientific eyes!) I would think that it looks like they have the potential to be highly useful even in people with lowered immune systems.

So far, the research is in relatively early stages as it is based on studies on mice, however it does look promising… one group of mice with liver and breast cancers were treated with the drug doxorubicin attached to the nanodiamonds, and the other group was tested with the drug alone. Those treated with the nanodiamonds had ten times higher levels of the drug than those without, and the levels of the drug remained high in this group too. It turns out that the doxorubicin is released more slowly when combined with the nanodiamonds which reduces toxicity to the mouse, as well as significantly reducing the size of tumours and increasing survival rates.

This research particularly excites me as I have been fundraising for the charity Breakthrough for Breastcancer for a number of years and know well how important discoveries like this can be. Who knows – in a few years they may have perfected the technique and be using it on humans… frankly, any way of reducing the effect of that terrible disease is really exciting.