National Heart and Lung Institute, Imperial College London, UK.
Pharmacol Ther. 2019 Jun;198:189-205. doi: 10.1016/j.pharmthera.2019.02.010. Epub 2019 Feb 21.
Lung cancer is an umbrella term for a subset of heterogeneous diseases that are collectively responsible for the most cancer-related deaths worldwide. Despite the tremendous progress made in understanding lung tumour biology, advances in early diagnosis, multimodal therapy and deciphering molecular mechanisms of drug resistance, overall curative outcomes remain low, especially in metastatic disease. Nanotechnology, in particular nanoparticles (NPs), continue to progressively impact the way by which tumours are diagnosed and treated. The unique physicochemical properties of materials at the nanoscale grant access to a diverse molecular toolkit that can be manipulated for use in respiratory oncology. This realisation has resulted in several clinically approved NP formulations and many more in clinical trials. However, NPs are not a panacea and have yet to be utilised to maximal effect in lung cancer, and medicine in a wider context. This review serves to: describe the complexity of lung cancer, the current diagnostic and therapeutic environment, and highlight the recent advancements of nanotechnology based approaches in diagnosis and treatment of respiratory malignancies. Finally, a brief outlook on the future directions of nanomedicine is provided; presently the full potential of the field is yet to be realised. By gleaning lessons and integrating advancements from neighbouring disciplines, nanomedicine can be elevated to a position where the current barriers that stymie full clinical impact are lifted.
肺癌是一组异质性疾病的统称，这些疾病共同导致了全球大多数癌症相关的死亡。尽管在理解肺癌肿瘤生物学、早期诊断、多模式治疗和破解耐药性的分子机制方面取得了巨大进展，但总体治愈效果仍然较低，特别是在转移性疾病中。纳米技术，特别是纳米颗粒（NPs），继续对肿瘤的诊断和治疗方式产生深远影响。纳米级材料的独特物理化学特性为多样化的分子工具提供了途径，这些工具可用于呼吸肿瘤学。这一认识导致了几种临床批准的 NP 制剂的出现，并有更多的制剂正在临床试验中。然而，NPs 并不是万能的，在肺癌及更广泛的医学领域中，它们尚未被充分利用以达到最大效果。本文旨在：描述肺癌的复杂性、当前的诊断和治疗环境，并强调基于纳米技术的诊断和治疗呼吸恶性肿瘤的最新进展。最后，简要展望纳米医学的未来方向；目前，该领域的全部潜力尚未实现。通过汲取经验教训并整合来自相邻学科的进展，纳米医学可以提升到一个可以消除目前阻碍其全面临床应用的障碍的位置。
