Prone-to-aggregate nanoparticle for cancer-targeted drug delivery

Nanoparticles (NPs) are emerging candidates in cancer management. Currently, they are extensively employed in biomedical applications, including drug delivery, imaging, sensing, gene therapy, photothermal therapy, photodynamic therapy, radiation therapy, immunotherapy, and magnetic hyperthermia, among others, for cancer management. Aggregating prone-to-aggregate NPs at the targeted site will help reduce off-target side effects and improve the efficacy of NPs. This diversity in NP applications is due to their dynamic surface properties, which allow their desired modifications for the intended application. Present NP research focuses on improving the efficacy of NPs by concentrating their distribution at the tumor site. This review discusses the prone-to-aggregate NPs aggregation approach to attain selective delivery at the tumor site following various stimuli (pH, enzyme, redox environment, temperature, interstitial fluid, magnetic field, light, etc.). Furthermore, this review also discusses the therapeutic and diagnostic applications of the prone-to-aggregate NPs aggregation approach in cancer therapy.