Physical-, chemical-, and biological-responsive nanomedicine for cancer therapy

Cancer therapy is unsatisfactory as it typically has serious side effects, because normal cells in healthy organs are destroyed along with the tumor. Thus, researchers have tried to develop effective therapies with minimal side effects. One such method is to use nanotechnology to carry the drugs or therapeutic agents to the tumor region by secure encapsulation without leakage. Once the nanomedicine enters the target tumor site, it can release therapeutic agents in an effective manner. Accordingly, various nanomedicines have been developed to enhance the efficiency of cancer therapy and minimize the systematic toxicity. Here, we provide an overview and discuss the different types of responsive nanomedicines including physically, chemically, biologically, dual, and multi-responsive nanomedicines, for the in situ release of cargos in recent years. We propose critical considerations that must be considered for the design of excellent stimuli-nanomedicine. Furthermore, the possible directions for the development of successful stimuli-responsive (smart) nanomedicine are highlighted. With the development of responsive nanomedicines, precise and personalized nanomedicine will be realized with great promise in the future. This article is categorized under: Therapeutic Approaches and Drug Discovery > Nanomedicine for Oncologic Disease Nanotechnology Approaches to Biology > Nanoscale Systems in Biology.