放射治疗是治疗癌症的宝贵工具。然而，当用作单一疗法时，它无法提供治疗效果。通常包括化疗药物以增强放射的效果。放射增敏药物的主要类别包括铂化合物、蒽环类药物、抗代谢药物、紫杉烷类、拓扑异构酶抑制剂、烷化剂和 DNA 损伤修复抑制剂。放化疗不仅会产生化疗药物的全身毒性，还会产生协同放射毒性。将放射增敏分子递送至肿瘤细胞同时避开邻近的健康组织至关重要。目前，纳米医学为肿瘤特异性递送放射增敏剂提供了途径。纳米级递送载体可以由脂质、聚合物或无机材料合成。此外，纳米医学涵盖刺激响应颗粒，包括用于肿瘤特异性激活的前药制剂。在临床上，纳米医学和放射治疗与 DOXIL 和 Abraxane 等已获批准的制剂交织在一起。尽管仍然存在许多挑战，但持续的进展证明了纳米医学和放化疗的前景光明。本文分类为：治疗方法和药物发现 > 用于肿瘤疾病治疗方法和药物发现的纳米医学 > 用于心血管疾病治疗方法和药物发现的纳米医学 > 新兴技术。© 2024 作者。 WIREs 纳米医学和纳米生物技术由 Wiley periodicals LLC 出版。

Radiotherapy is an invaluable tool in the treatment of cancer. However, when used as a monotherapy, it fails to provide curative outcomes. Chemotherapy drugs are often included to boost the effects of radiation. Key classes of radiosensitizing drugs include platinum compounds, anthracyclines, antimetabolites, taxanes, topoisomerase inhibitors, alkylating agents, and DNA damage repair inhibitors. Chemoradiotherapy suffers from not only systemic toxicities from chemotherapy drugs but also synergistic radiation toxicity as well. It is critical to deliver radiosensitizing molecules to tumor cells while avoiding adjacent healthy tissues. Currently, nanomedicine provides an avenue for tumor specific delivery of radiosensitizers. Nanoscale delivery vehicles can be synthesized from lipids, polymers, or inorganic materials. Additionally, nanomedicine encompasses stimuli responsive particles including prodrug formulation for tumor specific activation. Clinically, nanomedicine and radiotherapy are intertwined with approved formulation including DOXIL and Abraxane. Though many challenges remain, the ongoing progress evidences a promising future for both nanomedicine and chemoradiotherapy. This article is categorized under: Therapeutic Approaches and Drug Discovery > Nanomedicine for Oncologic Disease Therapeutic Approaches and Drug Discovery > Nanomedicine for Cardiovascular Disease Therapeutic Approaches and Drug Discovery > Emerging Technologies.© 2024 The Author(s). WIREs Nanomedicine and Nanobiotechnology published by Wiley Periodicals LLC.