In this study, an in situ gel-based dual drug delivery system (
PEG-PCL-PEG/DDP+MPEG-PCL/PTX, abbreviated as
PDMP) was prepared through the combination of a
cisplatin (DDP)-containing thermosensitive
hydrogel (
PEG-PCL-PEG/DDP, PECE/DDP) and
paclitaxel (PTX)-loaded polymeric
micelles (average diameter of 20.1nm).
PDMP is a free-flowing
solution at room temperature and forms a stationary gel at body temperature, allowing it to serve as a
drug depot for the in situ treatment of
lung cancer. For in vivo experiments, the xenografted
lung cancer model was used to evaluate the anti-
tumor efficacy of the
PDMP. The results suggested that
PDMP is effective at inhibiting
tumor growth and prolonging the survival time of
tumor-bearing BALB/c nude mice. The survival time of the
PDMP-treated group (53 days) is significantly higher than that of other groups (40 days from the free DDP+PTX group, 26 days from the blank PECE group, 25 days from the
normal saline group, p<0.05). Immunohistochemical analysis revealed that
tumors in the
PDMP group had fewer microvessels and lower proliferation activity compared with those of the control group. Thus,
PDMP may have great potential for in situ treatment of
lung cancer by minimally invasive injection methods.