Targeted drug delivery systems in Lymphoma treatment: Advances and clinical perspectives

Lymphomas are a heterogeneous group of hematologic tumors that pose a significant challenge in precise treatment. With the development of novel intervention strategies in lymphoma, such as targeted drugs and cell therapy, the prognosis and outcome of lymphoma patients have been greatly improved. However, there are also about 30 % of patients that display recurrence and eventually die, mainly due to the low effectiveness and targeting of current treatments. The advancements in novel drug delivery systems have revolutionized drug efficacy and tumor targeting in lymphoma treatment. Over the past few decades, various drug delivery systems, including nanocarriers, proteins, aptamers, and exosomes, have shown promising prospects in targeted therapy for lymphoma. These targeted delivery systems could carry anti-lymphoma drugs through physical embedding or chemical conjugation, which mitigate side effects and enhance therapeutic efficacy by ameliorating toxicity, prolonging systemic circulation time, and facilitating crossing of the blood-brain barrier. This review aims to summarize different drug delivery systems employed in lymphoma treatment and highlight their current applications and potential future implications, which might pave the way for the development of targeted therapy in lymphoma.