Nanocarrier drug delivery systems for gynecological cancer therapeutics
Jordan D Berezowitz, Brittany E. Givens
Abstract
Drug delivery systems (DDS) enhance drug delivery for treating gynecological cancers by increasing the bioavailability of commonly prescribed chemotherapeutics in these cancers. Gynecological cancers may originate in the ovary or fallopian tubes, uterus, cervix, and the vagina or vulva; each tissue of origin presenting unique signatures that determine the efficacy of active pharmaceutical ingredients in treating these cancers. Aside from cervical cancer, no screening mechanisms exist for gynecological cancers and therefore these cancers are typically diagnosed at later stages. Pre-clinical development for nanocarrier DDS has focused on improving existing treatments and developing DDS for novel therapies. For example, metals, metal oxides, and metal organic frameworks, have been investigated in ovarian, endometrial, and cervical cancers as alternatives to platinum-containing chemotherapeutics. Alternatively, polymeric delivery methods such as dendrimers, nano-/micro-spheres or implants can improve the delivery of existing drugs by offering greater specificity for the target tissue and thus higher bioavailability. Advances in drug delivery systems enhance the therapeutic efficacy of gynecological cancer treatments, but clinical translation still requires significant stages of investigations, including in vivo studies and clinical trials.