ABSTRACT
Cancer is a leading cause of deaths worldwide, so nanotechnology is currently under intense development for applications in cancer imaging, molecular diagnosis and targeted therapy. Nanotechnology refers to the interactions of cellular and molecular components and engineered materials-typically, clusters of atoms, molecules, and molecular fragments into incredibly small particles-between 1 and 100 nm. A large number of nanoparticle delivery systems have been developed for cancer therapy and currently they are in the preclinical stages of development. In the last several decades, nanoparticles such as liposomes, gelatin nanoparticles, micelles has been studied and developed primarily for use in novel drug-delivery systems. A recent explosion in engineering and technology has led to the development of many new nanoparticles, including quantum dots, nanoshells, gold nanoparticles, paramagnetic nanoparticles, and carbon nanotubes. When linked with biotargeting ligands, such as monoclonal antibodies, peptides or small molecules, these nanoparticles are used to target malignant tumors with high affinity and specificity. These developments raise exciting opportunities for personalized oncology in which genetic and protein biomarkers are used to diagnosis and treatment of cancer on molecular basis in individual patients. In this chapter, we will discuss the available preclinical and clinical nanoparticles technology platforms and their impact for cancer therapy.
