ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on injectable liposome-based drug delivery systems of anti-cancer drugs, the most widely used drug nanoparticle in cancer. Liposomes are spontaneously formed when amphiphilic lipids such as phospholipids are dispersed in water. The current trend is to classify liposomes into a class of pharmaceutical devices in the nanoscale range engineered by physical and/or chemical means, and referred to as nanomedicines. Current understanding of the molecular processes underlying the pathologic behavior of cancer cells has progressed enormously in the last decade. The drugs most frequently incorporated and evaluated in liposomal formulations are anthracyclines, including doxorubicin and daunorubicin. The anthracycline antibiotic doxorubicin has a broad spectrum of antineoplastic action and a correspondingly widespread degree of clinical use. As liposomes remain one of the most attractive platforms for systemic drug delivery, an increased expansion and sophistication of these systems would be expected in the forthcoming future.
