Abstract
Glioblastoma (GB) is an aggressive cancer with high microvascular proliferation, resulting in accelerated invasion and diffused infiltration into the surrounding brain tissues with very low survival rates. Treatment options are often multimodal, such as surgical resection with concurrent radiotherapy and chemotherapy. The development of resistance of tumor cells to radiation in the areas of hypoxia decreases the efficiency of such treatments. Additionally, the difficulty of ensuring drugs effectively cross the natural blood–brain barrier (BBB) substantially reduces treatment efficiency. These conditions concomitantly limit the efficacy of standard chemotherapeutic agents available for GB. Indeed, there is an urgent need of a multifunctional drug vehicle system that has potential to transport anticancer drugs efficiently to the target and can successfully cross the BBB. In this review, we summarize some nanoparticle (NP)-based therapeutics attached to GB cells with antigens and membrane receptors for site-directed drug targeting. Such multicore drug delivery systems are potentially biodegradable, site-directed, nontoxic to normal cells and offer long-lasting therapeutic effects against brain cancer. These models could have better therapeutic potential for GB as well as efficient drug delivery reaching the tumor milieu. The goal of this article is to provide key considerations and a better understanding of the development of nanotherapeutics with good targetability and better tolerability in the fight against GB.
Highlights
Cancer is a pervasive and fast-growing disease, characterized by unchecked proliferation of cells
A major barrier for brain tumor therapy includes the blood–brain barrier (BBB), which protects the brain from exposure to dangerous substances in the blood and serves as an anatomic and metabolic barrier preventing the transport of molecules delivered into the brain
We review some of the new nanotechnology-based approaches for drug delivery challenges to the brain, giving insight into those methods that are applicable to GB therapy
Summary
Cancer is a pervasive and fast-growing disease, characterized by unchecked proliferation of cells. Nanoparticle (NP)-based treatment strategies for cancer which include drug delivery and targeted therapies can ensure precise targeting of cancer tissue with minimal side effects [7,8]. Due to their biological nature, these drug delivery systems can cross cell barriers and the BBB [9,10]. Current research is focused on addressing challenges in new drug delivery approaches to improve treatment in clinical settings. We review some of the new nanotechnology-based approaches for drug delivery challenges to the brain, giving insight into those methods that are applicable to GB therapy
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