Recent Advances in Cancer Therapeutic Copper-Based Nanomaterials for Antitumor Therapy

Copper serves as a vital microelement which is widely present in the biosystem, functioning as multi-enzyme active site, including oxidative stress, lipid oxidation and energy metabolism, where oxidation and reduction characteristics are both beneficial and lethal to cells. Since tumor tissue has a higher demand for copper and is more susceptible to copper homeostasis, copper may modulate cancer cell survival through reactive oxygen species (ROS) excessive accumulation, proteasome inhibition and anti-angiogenesis. Therefore, intracellular copper has attracted great interest that multifunctional copper-based nanomaterials can be exploited in cancer diagnostics and antitumor therapy. Therefore, this review explains the potential mechanisms of copper-associated cell death and investigates the effectiveness of multifunctional copper-based biomaterials in the field of antitumor therapy.