An insight into cancer nanomedicine based on polysaccharides

With cancer rates on the rise around the world, cancer treatment has dominated scientific discussions in recent years. The toxicity of cytotoxic drugs, their lack of tumor localization, and their uniform dispersion into tumor tissues are the obstacles to cancer therapy. Other cancer treatment drawbacks include short blood circulation half-lives and undesirable pharmacokinetic behavior. Low-molecular-weight drugs conjugated with macromolecular carriers are better distributed in the body. The enhanced permeation and retention (EPR) effect causes natural and synthetic polymers, such as polysaccharides, proteins, antibodies, and poly amino acids, to accumulate in tumor tissue. Many manufactured and natural polymers are attractive polymeric drug carriers, allowing the creation of prodrugs from medicinal substances. Polysaccharides are biological polymers with structural and functional variations. They are also non-toxic, hydrophilic, biodegradable, and efficiently bioactive. Polysaccharides are ideal for synthesizing many nanoparticles due to their functional groups. Their ability to adapt to their microenvironment makes them valuable. Nanoplatforms based on polysaccharides can deliver targeted anticancer drugs for personalized cancer treatment. Unique polysaccharide structures and properties offer chemical and biological advantages for novel drug delivery. Polysaccharide-drug conjugation could revolutionize cancer chemotherapy. This study investigates polysaccharide conjugates and polysaccharides as natural biomaterials for cancer drug delivery.