Bioactive metal sulfide nanomaterials as photo-enhanced chemodynamic nanoreactors for tumor therapy

Metal sulfide nanomaterials (MeSNs) are highly promising for biomedical applications due to their low toxicity, good dispersibility, high stability, adjustable particle sizes, and good biocompatibility. Their unique chemical and light-conversion properties also enable them to function as photothermal or photodynamic agents, enhancing chemodynamic therapy (CDT) of tumors. This makes MeSNs valuable as photo-enhanced CDT nanoagents, advancing precision and multi-modal tumor treatment. This review examines recent advancements in MeSNs for photo-enhanced chemodynamic tumor ablation, comparing their effectiveness in CDT. It highlights the roles of photothermal, photodynamic, and photocatalytic effects in enhancing treatment efficacy. MeSN-based nanoreactors are categorized by composition into iron sulfide, copper sulfide, other unary, and multi-MeSNs for their applications in tumor therapy. Additionally, this review discusses challenges, limitations, and future biomedical applications of MeSNs, offering insights into their potential for next-generation cancer treatments.