Pataldhamal wadhwani college of pharmacy, Yavatmal, Maharashtra, India.
Nanotechnology has emerged as a transformative approach in cancer treatment through the development of targeted drug delivery systems. These systems utilize nanoparticles to deliver therapeutic agents precisely to cancer cells, thereby minimizing damage to healthy tissues and enhancing treatment efficacy. This review explores various nanocarriers, including liposomes, dendrimers, solid lipid nanoparticles, gold nanoparticles, and polymeric nanoparticles, highlighting their mechanisms and clinical applications. Passive targeting, driven by the Enhanced Permeability and Retention (EPR) effect, and active targeting, facilitated by ligand-receptor interactions, represent key strategies in these delivery systems. Additionally, stimuli-responsive nanoparticles that release drugs in response to environmental triggers, such as pH or temperature changes, offer promising advancements for controlled drug delivery. The advantages of nanotechnology-based drug delivery include improved drug bioavailability, reduced systemic toxicity, and enhanced patient compliance through lower dosing requirements. Despite significant advancements, challenges such as nanoparticle toxicity, regulatory hurdles, and scalability issues persist, hindering the widespread clinical adoption of these systems. Future research should focus on optimizing nanoparticle design, ensuring long-term safety, and developing standardized regulatory protocols. The integration of nanotechnology with personalized medicine holds immense potential for more effective, patient-specific cancer therapies, marking a significant step forward in oncology care.
The disease of cancer remains one of the primary factors in worldwide mortality statistics because it generates millions of annual new diagnoses [7]. Cancer treatment approaches like chemotherapy and radiation and surgery have proven effective but their medical delivery becomes less efficient due to poor cancer cell targeting and serious undesired side effects [2,8]. Significant research efforts have focused on nanotechnology-based drug delivery systems (DDS) because of increased need for effective precision-based drug delivery methods [9]. Nanotechnology contributes new possibilities for cancer treatment since it allows drugs to be specifically directed at cancer cells which reduces treatment-related side effects and increases therapeutic effectiveness [3]. Nanoparticle technology enables pharmaceutical agents to reach tumor sites more effectively thus protecting untouched healthy cells which conventional treatment methods harm [1,4]. The review investigates nanotechnology applications in cancer medications through targeted delivery methods used to treat the disease.
Figure no. 1 A schematic of nanotechnology-based drug delivery for cancer treatment.
2. Fundamentals of Nanotechnology
Nanotechnology deals with both the creation along with functionality of products at nanoscale dimensions which span from 1 nm to 100 nm [5]. The reduced scale of materials leads to unique characteristics which include larger surface area and improved reactivity that makes them ideal for pharmaceutical delivery systems [6]. Through controlled biological system interactions nanoparticles become effective platforms for enhancing both drug uptake and therapeutic impact [3]. Drugs are transported using various nanometer-scale particles like liposomes together with dendrimers and gold nanoparticles and polymeric nanoparticles [1,7]. Each form has benefits that include being biofriendly as well as the ability to modify the surface structure and the dual drug compatibility [2]. Synthesizing nanoparticles requires different production methods like solvent evaporation and emulsion polymerization and self-assembly approaches that enable sustainable adjustments of particle dimensions and surface properties [9]. Many individuals have survived cancer through classic chemotherapy and radiation yet these techniques impose certain restrictions. Major obstacles in cancer cell targeting interfere with effective medicine delivery thus leading to strong secondary effects. Chemotherapy applies its treatment to both healthy and cancerous cells which produces adverse side effects that include nausea and hair loss and immune suppression [8].
Better drug delivery systems should become a medical priority because they need to specifically reach tumors efficiently while minimizing side effects to enhance therapy results. Standard drug delivery approaches produce unsatisfactory drug effects because they result in limited drug availability combined with improper distribution dynamics and fast drug removal from the body [4].
3. Mechanisms of Targeted Drug Delivery
Drug delivery systems built for targeting seek to enhance therapeutic compound concentrations in diseases areas while maintaining minimal exposure of healthy tissue areas. Targeted drug delivery includes two different approaches known as passive and active targeting.
Figure no. 2: A comparison of passive and active targeting in nanotechnology-based drug delivery.
3.1 Passive Targeting (EPR Effect)
The Enhanced Permeability and Retention (EPR) effect makes up passive targeting enabling the use of nanoparticles which depend on their natural properties [8]. Through tumor-specific leaky blood vessels nanoparticles can establish higher accumulation concentrations inside the tumor region [9].
3.2 Active Targeting
The active targeting approach uses ligands attached to nanostructures through a process that brings them to cancer receptors due to their overexpression [2]. Specific drug delivery becomes more targeted through this approach which actually decreases unintended therapeutic action [1,3].
3.3 Stimuli-Responsive Drug Delivery
The design of smart and stimuli-responsive nanoparticles allows them to release drugs upon detection of specific triggers including pH changes as well as temperature variations and enzyme presence [7]. The purpose of this delivery technique is to activate the drug release mechanism exclusively within tumor spaces which maximizes treatment effectiveness [9].
Figure no. 3: schematic of stimuli-responsive nanoparticles for cancer drug delivery.
4. Nanotechnology-Based Targeted Drug Delivery Systems
The field of targeted drug delivery for cancer treatment has led to various developments of different nano-sized materials [6]. The delivery systems encompass liposomes together with dendrimers and solid lipid nanoparticles (SLNs) and gold nanoparticles and polymeric nanoparticles.
4.1 Liposomes:
Liposomes represent a spherical vesicular structure which includes drug-encapsulating lipid bilayers in their structure. Targeting ligand functionalization of liposomes enhances their cell-specific drug delivery capabilities to cancer cells. The delivery of chemotherapy drug doxorubicin happens through widespread use of liposomal carriers [1,3].
4.2 Dendrimers:
The branched tree-like structure of dendrimers enables scientists to place several drug molecules on their surface. The well-defined structural makeup of these nanoparticles enables their usage in delivering medication and targeting cancer therapy [4].
4.3 Solid Lipid Nanoparticles (SLNs):
The drug delivery method using Solid Lipid Nanoparticles (SLNs) contains solid lipids within their structure to provide drug stability together with controlled drug release features and benefits of biocompatibility. These technical platforms work effectively with hydrophilic and lipophilic medications and scientists use them for cancer treatment applications.[5]
4.4 Gold Nanoparticles:
The therapeutic properties of cancer treatment can benefit from gold nanoparticles because they permit simple biomolecule attachment as well as improved therapeutic outcomes. Cancer cell selection becomes possible by modifying these nanoparticles' surfaces.[6]
4.5 Polymeric Nanoparticles:
The biocompatible characteristics of polymeric nanoparticles allow them to serve as drug carriers for different compounds. Cancer therapy employs these particles because they deliver drugs through controlled mechanisms.
Figure no. 4: Types of Nanoparticles Used in Cancer Therapy
5. Applications of Nanotechnology in Cancer Therapy
Cancer treatment success rates show improvement through nanotechnology platforms which deliver medication systems [3]. Below are some notable applications:
5.1 Drug Delivery:
The delivery of cancer medications including paclitaxel occurs through nanoparticle carriers such as liposomes and polymeric nanoparticles. Drugs accumulate better in tumors through these systems that simultaneously minimize the toxicity throughout the body.[2]
5.2 Immunotherapy & Gene Therapy:
Nanotechnology research teams assess nanoparticles as delivery platforms for immunotherapeutic elements and cancer gene therapies which either activate immune responses or deactivate cancer-causing genes to create modern cancer treatment methods.[4]
5.3 Combination Therapies:
The use of nanoparticles enables fusion between chemotherapy treatments and immunotherapy or gene therapy which creates optimal therapeutic effects for enhanced cancer response.[6]
5.4 Clinical Trials:
Several clinical trials assess both safety and effectiveness of nanoparticle-based drug delivery systems for cancer therapy during live testing. Recent trial outcomes indicate that these systems show strong potential to improve therapeutic effectiveness.[9]
6. Advantages of Nanotechnology in Drug Delivery
Drug delivery systems built on nanotechnology provide various benefits when compared to conventional delivery methods. [1,2]
6.1 Enhanced Drug Bioavailability:
Nanoparticles enhance drug bioavailability through improved water solubility which leads to better therapeutic effectiveness of poorly dissolving medications.[3]
6.2 Reduced Side Effects:
Lower Side Effects Exist Because Nanoparticles Direct Drug Delivery into Tumors Instead of Toxic Drug Exposure to Healthy Tissues.[4]
6.3 Controlled Drug Release:
The enhanced circulation times with nanoparticles allow controlled drug delivery systems to improve drug pharmacokinetic profiles.[5]
6.4 Lower Doses & Patient Compliance:
Nanotechnology enables drug delivery systems which demand minimal doses and provide patients with high convenience thus leading to better achievement of treatment goals.[9]
7. Challenges and Future Directions
Although there is great potential using nanotechnology for drug delivery, several obstacles need to be overcome.[7]
7.1 Regulatory Hurdles:
Regulatory approval for the use of nanoparticle-based drugs is complicated and takes a considerable long time. A big challenge is to develop standardized protocols of the safety and efficacy of these systems.[6]
7.2 Manufacturing and Scalability:
A challenge to large scale and high-quality production of nanoparticles is required.[5]
7.3 Toxicity Concerns:
There are still concerns about long time toxicity of nanoparticles and further study is needed before nanoparticles are universally used in clinical practice.[4]
7.4 Future of nanotechnology in cancer treatment:
The future of nanotechnology in cancer treatment may be in its ability to deliver personalized therapies according to each individual patient’s genetic profile and the specific characteristics of their tumor.[9]
Figure no. 5: challenges and future directions of nanotechnology-based drug delivery
8. DISCUSSION
Nanotechnology-based drug delivery systems are a groundbreaking innovation in cancer therapy with several advantages over traditional chemotherapy and radiotherapy [1,2]. The key benefits of using nanoparticle-based delivery systems would be to enhance the stability and bioavailability of the drugs [3]. Nanoparticles are another such delivery system that can help improve the solubility of poorly water-soluble drugs, including liposomes, dendrimers, and solid lipid nanoparticles (SLNs), which is a common problem in traditional cancer therapy [4,5]. Additionally, nanoparticles possess unique characteristics, including their small size and large surface area, which allow them to bind and exert molecular interactions at an optimal level with cancer cells [6,7]. Moreover, nanoparticles can be designed to improve drug solubility as well as target tumor sites via active and passive targeting mechanisms [8]. The Enhanced Permeability and Retention (EPR) effect underlies passive targeting, whereby nanoparticles preferentially migrate towards and accumulates in tumor tissues owing to leaky blood vessels encasing the tumor. In contrast, active targeting involves the decoration of nanoparticles with surface modifications, including ankyrin, peptides, or other ligands, for improved tumor-associated receptor targeting of nanoparticles [7,9]. Additionally, nanoparticles can be engineered to release their drug payloads in response to certain stimuli, exhibiting stimuli-responsive drug delivery characteristics, which can be achieved by the following: The use of these smart nanoparticles for controlled drug release can overcome systemic toxicity while achieving therapeutic drug concentration at the tumor site [5]. Nanoparticles responsive to stimuli have emerged as promising vehicles to address the major issues associated with conventional drug delivery, namely, burst drug release and rapid drug clearance from the bloodstream. Although the merits of nanotechnology for the delivery of drugs are on the table, overcoming the various challenges that hinder the realization of these systems in clinical practice is yet to be elucidated. A major bottleneck is the regulatory approval pathway for nanoparticle-based drug delivery vehicles. Because of the complexity of nanoparticles, regulatory agencies like the FDA mandate a large amount of preclinical and clinical data before approving such agents for clinical use. This pathway, however, is lengthy and expensive, and has hindered the commercialization of many promising nanoparticle- based therapies. [2,8] The scalability and reproducibility of nanoparticle production is another hurdle to overcome. The synthesis of nanoparticles needs to be finely tuned to afford uniformity in particle size, particle surface charge, and drug encapsulation ability. With a growing demand for these systems, efficient, scalable, and cost-effective methods of manufacturing will be important. In addition, differences in the properties of nanoparticles might result in variable treatment responses, which would add to the challenges of clinical translation of these systems. [3,7] Lastly, the long-term safety and toxicity of nanoparticles is of great concern. While in vitro studies have shown a positive biocompatible response of a large array of nanoparticles, none has demonstrated effects over the human health employee's entire lifespan. Nanoparticles could even build up in the liver, spleen or lungs and may cause problems in the long run. Hence, comprehensive toxicological studies need to be conducted to evaluate the safety of nanoparticles before they are used in clinical settings. [6,9]
9. CONCLUSION
Nanotechnology has emerged as a breakthrough in cancer treatment, providing new avenues for targeted and effective drug delivery systems. Nanoparticles can be employed to more accurately deliver medication to cancer cells, leading to fewer side effects and improved therapeutic success. However, there are still challenges related to safety, regulatory approval, and scalability that need to be addressed, despite the fact that nanotechnology-based drug delivery systems have made significant advances. However, it is worth noting that development in cancer treatment is continuously evolving based on ongoing research, with such systems optimizing for personalized and precision medicine in its future endeavors.
REFERENCES
Om Chiddarwar, The Role of Nanotechnology in Targeted Drug Delivery Systems for Cancer Treatment, Int. J. of Pharm. Sci., 2025, Vol 3, Issue 5, 2888-2895. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.15450171
10.5281/zenodo.15450171
