A trial of 17 breast cancer patients found that delivering a chemotherapy drug directly into the 
nipple resulted in more drug remaining within the breast increasing efficiency.
By using a catheter placed into the nipple, formulations of breast cancer drugs can be infused into the breasts. The effectiveness of four anti-cancer drugs being administered in this way were examined and the researchers from John Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center found that 5-flourouracil (5FU) in comparison to pegylated liposomal doxorubicin (PLD) shrank breast tumours efficiently and spared breast ducts from damage caused by other anti-cancer drugs which can destroy the ductal lining.
By delivering chemotherapy drugs via an intraductal route in comparison to intravenous drug administration higher concentrations of the drugs are found in the breast reducing the quantities of drugs circulating in the blood.
