Harnessing piezoelectric materials for tumor therapy: Current advances and outlook

Piezoelectric materials have emerged as a transformative technology in tumor therapy, offering innovative solutions to longstanding challenges in cancer treatment. These materials leverage their unique electromechanical coupling properties to convert various energy forms, such as ultrasound and mechanical stimuli, into localized electric fields. This capability facilitates precise drug delivery, enhances reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation for dynamic therapies, and enables localized electrical stimulation, all while minimizing damage to healthy tissues. Recent advancements in nano-piezoelectric materials, including both inorganic and organic types, have demonstrated enhanced efficacy in addressing the complexities of the tumor microenvironment (TME), such as hypoxia, acidity, and immunosuppressive conditions. This review explores the classification, mechanisms, and therapeutic applications of piezoelectric materials, highlighting their roles in multimodal cancer therapies. With promising preclinical results, these materials pave the way for next-generation, minimally invasive cancer treatments, integrating therapeutic precision and diagnostic capability. Future research must focus on enhancing material biocompatibility, optimizing piezoelectric responses, and addressing biosafety concerns to transition these technologies from the lab to the clinic. STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE: Piezoelectric materials offer a novel strategy for cancer therapy by converting mechanical stimuli (e.g., ultrasound) into localized electric fields and reactive oxygen species (ROS), enabling targeted drug delivery, enhanced dynamic therapies, and immune modulation within complex tumor microenvironments (TME). These materials address key challenges such as hypoxia, acidity, and metabolic dysregulation while sparing healthy tissues. Integration with nanotechnology amplifies their performance, supporting multimodal approaches that combine diagnostics and treatment. This review summarizes recent advances, highlights considerations of biocompatibility and biosafety, and outlines translational challenges and future directions. By bridging material science and oncology, piezoelectric tumor therapy offers promising pathways toward precise, minimally invasive cancer treatments.