Drug Delivery and Molecular Sensing

Program summary

The Drug Delivery and Molecular Sensing (DDMS) Research Program is comprised of faculty members at Purdue University with the mission of providing physical science/engineering and technology solutions to advance the understanding of cancer biology, and to improve prevention, detection and treatment of cancers.  These solutions that the Program provides are the result of integrating diverse Purdue University core strengths into collaborative studies that are launched from DDMS-associated expertise and that include innovation at the forefront of physics, chemistry and engineering disciplines. These solutions include molecular conjugates and nanoparticles for targeted drug delivery, new imaging modalities for surgical guidance and detection of drug sensitivity, and new in vitro tumor models to study cancer biology that can be applied to basic discoveries and translational efforts in cancer research.  Program membership is organized into three themes/cluster areas:

  • Delivery Technologies
  • Sensing Technologies
  • Enabling Technologies

Research efforts across these thematic areas result in: (1) innovative "theranostic" approaches, in which imaging and therapeutic functions are integrated into small molecular conjugates; (2) image-guided surgery and drug delivery approaches to precisely detect surgical margins; (3) new engineered tumor and cancer risk models as testbeds for new imaging and diagnostic techniques and for research on drug resistance and phenotypic heterogeneity; and (4) epigenetics-based methods to determine microenvironment-mediated mechanisms of cancer onset.

The Institute for Cancer Research also inspires the continuing development of scientific leaders in cancer research through innovative training and mentoring.

Program leaders 

Bumsoo Han, Co-Leader (Mechanical and Biomedical Engineering)

Yoon Yeo Co-Leader (Industrial & Physical Pharmacy)

View our entire membership list.