Cancer mutations - genes

Bursting balloons in the bloodstream is being investigated as a new way of attacking cancer.

The "balloons" are cell-sized polymer bubbles filled with anti-cancer drugs.

The idea is to track the bubbles through the bloodstream and burst them at the site of tumours with a focused ultrasound pulse.

As a result the chemotherapy agents are released only where needed and are less likely to damage healthy cells.

Steve Klink, from the Netherlands-based electronics company Philips which is pioneering the technology, told The Engineer magazine: "Traditional chemotherapy is administered to every part of the body and is certainly an effective therapy for patients, but it does have side effects."