Abstract
Conventional chemotherapy regimens have limitations due to serious adverse effects. Targeted drug delivery systems to reduce systemic toxicity are a powerful drug development platform. Encapsulation of antitumor drug(s) in thermosensitive nanocarriers is an emerging approach with a promise to improve uptake and increase therapeutic efficacy, as they can be activated by hyperthermia selectively at the tumor site. In this review, we focus on thermosensitive nanosystems associated with hyperthermia for the treatment of cancer, in preclinical and clinical use.
Highlights
Cancer is considered a public health problem due to the high incidence and mortality
Thermo-responsive polymeric micelles are formulated through a self-assembly process using amphiphilic block copolymers that spontaneously assemble into a core–shell structure in an aqueous environment above the critical micelle concentration (CMC) [55]
Mild hyperthermia is not associated with toxicity in contrast to radiotherapy and chemotherapy
Summary
Cancer is considered a public health problem due to the high incidence and mortality. Conventional chemotherapy regimens have limitations, such as low specificity, which generates adverse effects that compromise the treatment and the health of the patient. Thermosensitive carrier systems are composed of lipids or polymers that transition from the gel phase to the crystalline liquid phase in response to heat, allowing drug release in the heated region [5]. The treatment might be applied in combination with other approaches in order to allow greater accumulation of drugs in the heated region and may increase efficacy and decrease side effects [6,7]. The purpose of this review was to describe the most common thermosensitive nanocarriers used for tumor-specific drug release. We reviewed the most recent preclinical studies (2009–2019) involving thermosensitive systems associated with hyperthermia for the treatment of cancer
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