Abstract

NANOCARRIERS: AS POTENTIAL TARGETED DRUG DELIVERY SYSTEMS FOR CANCER THERAPY

Mercy Sulochana M.*

Abstract

The scenario of cancer therapy has changed dramatically over the recent years. The interest in developing few formulations to target the tumor cells has gained more inquisitiveness as this is a daunting challenge to the medical fraternity and the quest to find answers to these questions is ongoing till date. There is always a dire need for a formulation which targets only the cancer cells leaving the healthy cells intact. Nanocarriers are one such formulations which allow cancer specific drug delivery by inherent passive targeting phenomena and adopted active targeting strategies. Apart from improving the stability of hydrophobic drugs, these formulations aid in increased efficacy of drugs by enhancing the biodistribution and pharmacokinetics profiles. Nanocarriers have got the potential to revolutionize cancer diagnosis and therapy. The focus of the current article is to provide an overview of various Nanocarriers such as nanoliposomes, dendrimers, michelles, magnetic, metallic nanoparticles, etc. and their applications in cancer therapy.

Keywords: Cancer, Nanocarriers, active targeting, passive targeting, Nanoparticles.