Polymers, Vol. 17, Pages 1010: Development of Stimuli-Responsive Polymeric Nanomedicines in Hypoxic Tumors and Their Therapeutic Promise in Oral Cancer

Polymers doi: 10.3390/polym17081010

Authors:
Jialong Hou
Zhijun Xue
Yao Chen
Jisen Li
Xin Yue
Ying Zhang
Jing Gao
Yonghong Hao
Jing Shen

Hypoxic tumors pose considerable obstacles to cancer treatment, as diminished oxygen levels can impair drug effectiveness and heighten therapeutic resistance. Oral cancer, a prevalent malignancy, encounters specific challenges owing to its intricate anatomical structure and the technical difficulties in achieving complete resection, thereby often restricting treatment efficacy. The impact of hypoxia is particularly critical in influencing both the treatment response and prognosis of oral cancers. This article summarizes and examines the potential of polymer nanomedicines to address these challenges. By engineering nanomedicines that specifically react to the hypoxic tumor microenvironment, these pharmaceuticals can markedly enhance targeting precision and therapeutic effectiveness. Polymer nanomedicines enhance therapeutic efficacy while reducing side effects by hypoxia-targeted accumulation. The article emphasizes that these nanomedicines can overcome the drug resistance frequently observed in hypoxic tumors by improving the delivery and bioavailability of anticancer agents. Furthermore, this review elucidates the design and application of polymer nanomedicines for treating hypoxic tumors, highlighting their transformative potential in cancer therapy. Finally, this article gives an outlook on stimuli-responsive polymeric nanomedicines in the treatment of oral cancer.

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Jialong Hou www.mdpi.com