Far and away the biggest challenge here is to figure out a "marker of a given disease". If the "marker" is something circulating in the blood, then this project is basically developing a chemistry test that can be ingested as a pill, absorbed into the blood, run autonomously in the bloodstream, collected magnetically and interpreted on the spot. Alternatively, you could do a simple blood draw and send the tube to the lab. Right now, we don't have any effective cancer screening based on this approach. If the "marker" is bound to a cell, this gets even harder. Presumably, the "marker" would be something that doesn't belong on the cell. However, your immune system is an expert at detecting what should and should not be on a cell surface. The nanoparticle must be able to figure out that the cell surface "marker" doesn't belong there, and do this more efficiently than your own immune system. That's a tall order. If Google wants to make a major contribution, forget the nanoparticle. Just figure out the markers. It would easily be worth a Nobel prize (possibly several).

Wrong. It's five times more potent because it has five times more hydrocodone. As far as potency is concerned, hydrocodone is metabolized into the much more potent hydromorphone, which itself is available by prescription for a much lower cost.

I am a physician, and part of what I do is to treat patients with chronic pain. However, this drug is completely unnecessary. The problem with Zohydro is that it is an extremely expensive medication. There are much cheaper alternatives which are more potent, there are much cheaper alternatives which are less potent, and you can get a much cheaper pill with exactly the same active ingredient mixed with Tylenol. As a result, I see no role for this medication. To make matters worse, I see a lot of patients who think that hydrocodone is somehow safer than other narcotics. This simply isn't true. An overdose on hydrocodone will kill you as surely as an overdose of oxycodone, morphine or hydromorphone. Making larger doses available of a narcotic which is wrongly perceived to be "safe" opens the door to large numbers of deaths from overdose, whether accidental or recreational. While I have no qualms about treating chronic pain, I don't plan on writing a single prescription for this drug.