Cutting-edge technology for the pediatric cancer ward — GSI/FAIR participate in new LOEWE research cluster for medical technology MultiDrug-TDM
29.09.2025 |
This news is based on a press release of Technical University Darmstadt.
The new LOEWE research cluster “MultiDrug-TDM”, coordinated by Professor TorstenFrosch at TU Darmstadt, will receive 4.3 million euros state funding for four years, starting in January. The goal is to research a novel, intelligent sensor system to significantly improve pediatric cancer care. By measuring drug levels directly at the bedside, immediate adjustments and thus optimized personalized therapy will be possible. GSI/FAIR are involved in the project via the department Materials Research, headed by TU professor Maria Eugenia Toimil-Molares.
Standard therapies often fall short in children, as individual metabolic differences are rarely considered. But especially in cancer treatment, precise, personalized dosages are crucial to ensure both effective and gentle therapy. This is where the new interdisciplinary LOEWE research cluster „Personalized biomedical engineering for therapeutic drug monitoring at the point of care in pediatric oncology – MultiDrug-TDM“ takes action: A team from TU Darmstadt and Goethe University Frankfurt is researching an innovative sensor system that measures drug concentrations in body fluids in real time, thus enabling personalized treatment for young patients.
The new LOEWE research cluster MultiDrug-TDM focuses on research into a highly innovative sensor system that can be used to determine the levels of life-saving drugs in pediatric cancer patients directly at the point of care using minimal blood samples. This enables real-time dose adjustments during ward rounds. To date, blood samples have to be sent to specialized laboratories, which prevents timely dose adjustments. Thus, optimal therapy is currently not possible. MultiDrug-TDM will shift the paradigm for therapeutic drug monitoring (TDM): With a portable point-of-care device, physicians could make informed decisions for optimized personalized therapy directly at the bedside – fast, data-based and patient-centered.
GSI/FAIR Materials Research, led by Professor Toimil-Molares, together with her working group at TU Darmstadt, is contributing with the development of special polymer membranes and sensors for blood filtration and biomarker detection. The scientists have leading expertise in the modification and nanostructuring of materials with high-energy heavy ions, such as the production of ion-track-etched polymer membranes and individual nanopores. A smart, microfluidic filtration process achievable through these advanced technologies would enable the simultaneous determination of active ingredients by Raman spectroscopy and biomarkers using nanopores, thus allowing for more precise adaptation of therapy and sparing children painful blood draws. (CP)
