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R E V I E W S
Nanoparticle(NP). Particle of any shape with dimensions in the 1100 nm range, as defined by the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC). Despite this size restriction, the term nanoparticles commonly applies to structures that are up to several hundred nanometres in size, although key is that design of the nanostructure produces a unique function and property.
Center for Nanomedicine and Department of Anesthesiology, Brigham and Womens Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, USA.
Department of Medicine, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, New York 10065, USA.
Tarveda Therapeutics, Watertown, Massachusetts 02472, USA.
King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah 21589, Saudi Arabia.
Correspondence to O.C.F. mailto:[email protected]
Web End [email protected]
doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/nrc.2016.108
Web End =10.1038/nrc.2016.108 Published online 11 Nov 2016
The growing interest in applying nanotechnology to cancer is largely attributable to its uniquely appealing features for drug delivery, diagnosis and imaging, synthetic vaccine development and miniature medical devices, as well as the therapeutic nature of some nanomaterials themselves16 (BOX1). Nanotherapies that incorporate some of these features (for example, improved circulation and reduced toxicity) are already in use today, and others show great promise in clinical development, with definitive results expected in the near future. Several therapeutic nanoparticle (NP) platforms, such as liposomes, albumin NPs and polymeric micelles, have been approved for cancer treatment, and many other nanotechnologyenabled therapeutic modalities are under clinical investigation, including chemotherapy, hyperthermia, radiation therapy, gene or RNA interference (RNAi) therapy and immunotherapy (TABLE1).
Along with enormous progress in the field of cancer nanomedicine (FIG.1), we have also gradually realized the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead. Foremost, the complexity and the heterogeneity of tumours make it clear that careful patient selection is required to identify those most likely to benefit from a given nanotherapy. This is analogous to the targeted therapies approved or under development for use in specific biomarkerdefined patient populations. Most therapeutic NPs for solid tumour treatment are administered systemically; they accumulate in the tumour through the enhanced permeability and retention (EPR)
effect710, which is generally thought to be the product of leaky tumour vasculature and poor lymphatic drainage. However, this interpretation of EPR is somewhat
oversimplified, as multiple biological steps in the systemic delivery of NPs can influence the effect,...