An Overview of Nanoparticles for Treatment of Retinoblastoma: Disease Characteristics and Experimental Approaches

Abstract

Retinoblastoma is the most common type of eye cancer in infants and children. Probability of saving vision and survival depends upon two main factors: progression of the disease from unilateral to bilateral and severity of the disease. In order to effectively treat retinoblastoma and retain vision, it is crucial to focus treatment options on reducing toxicity and nonspecific targeting while enhancing drug delivery, cellular uptake, and accumulation of chemotherapeutic agents to their specific target sites. Rapid elimination from blood circulation is the greatest obstacle that conventional chemotherapeutic agents face on journey to their target sites. Target specific nanoparticles have proven to be a useful tool in efforts to overcome challenges typically encountered by targeting strategies. Development of nanoparticles loaded with chemotherapeutic agents can allow for more selective tumor targeting, extended drug circulation times, and reduced drug-associated toxicity. Nanoparticles can significantly improve the treatment efficacy in retinoblastoma. The purpose of this review is to discuss the important characteristics and differences of nano delivery systems used against cellular and in vivo models of retinoblastoma, particularly as they relate to the popular Y79 retinoblastoma cell line.