Polymer-Based Drug Delivery Systems for Cancer Therapeutics

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Abstract

Chemotherapy together with surgery and/or radiotherapy are the most common therapeutic methods for treating cancer. However, the off-target effects of chemotherapy are known to produce side effects and dose-limiting toxicities. Novel delivery platforms based on natural and synthetic polymers with enhanced pharmacokinetic and therapeutic potential for the treatment of cancer have grown tremendously over the past 10 years. Polymers can facilitate selective targeting, enhance and prolong circulation, improve delivery, and provide the controlled release of cargos through various mechanisms, including physical adsorption, chemical conjugation, and/or internal loading. Notably, polymers that are biodegradable, biocompatible, and physicochemically stable are considered to be ideal delivery carriers. This biomimetic and bio-inspired system offers a bright future for effective drug delivery with the potential to overcome the obstacles encountered. This review focuses on the barriers that impact the success of chemotherapy drug delivery as well as the recent developments based on natural and synthetic polymers as platforms for improving drug delivery for treating cancer.

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Hyuna Sung, Jacques Ferlay, Rebecca Siegel … (2021)

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In recent years, the development of nanoparticles has expanded into a broad range of clinical applications. Nanoparticles have been developed to overcome the limitations of free therapeutics and navigate biological barriers — systemic, microenvironmental and cellular — that are heterogeneous across patient populations and diseases. Overcoming this patient heterogeneity has also been accomplished through precision therapeutics, in which personalized interventions have enhanced therapeutic efficacy. However, nanoparticle development continues to focus on optimizing delivery platforms with a one-size-fits-all solution. As lipid-based, polymeric and inorganic nanoparticles are engineered in increasingly specified ways, they can begin to be optimized for drug delivery in a more personalized manner, entering the era of precision medicine. In this Review, we discuss advanced nanoparticle designs utilized in both non-personalized and precision applications that could be applied to improve precision therapies. We focus on advances in nanoparticle design that overcome heterogeneous barriers to delivery, arguing that intelligent nanoparticle design can improve efficacy in general delivery applications while enabling tailored designs for precision applications, thereby ultimately improving patient outcome overall.

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Author and article information

Contributors

Ling Ding: (View ORCID Profile)

Prachi Agrawal: (View ORCID Profile)

Sandeep K. Singh: (View ORCID Profile)

Yashpal S. Chhonker: (View ORCID Profile)

Jingjing Sun: (View ORCID Profile)

Daryl J. Murry: (View ORCID Profile)

Journal

Journal ID (publisher-id): POLYCK

Title: Polymers

Abbreviated Title: Polymers

Publisher: MDPI AG

ISSN (Electronic): 2073-4360

Publication date Created: March 2024

Publication date (Electronic): March 19 2024

Volume: 16

Issue: 6

Page: 843

Article

DOI: 10.3390/polym16060843

PubMed ID: 38543448

SO-VID: 68557b0f-55a2-4b91-8657-881045132e53

License:

https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

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