Mafe Alice N, Büsselberg Dietrich
Department of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Sciences, Taraba State University, Main Campus, Jalingo 660101, Taraba State, Nigeria.
Weill Cornell Medicine-Qatar, Education City, Qatar Foundation, Doha Metropolitan Area, Ar-Rayyan P.O. Box 22104, Qatar.
Pharmaceutics. 2025 Jun 24;17(7):820. doi: 10.3390/pharmaceutics17070820.
Multidrug-resistant (MDR) bacterial infections present a major challenge in cancer therapy, particularly for immunocompromised patients undergoing chemotherapy, radiation, or surgery. These infections often arise from prolonged antibiotic use, hospital-acquired pathogens, and weakened immune defenses, leading to increased morbidity and mortality. As conventional antibiotics become less effective against MDR strains, there is an urgent need for alternative treatment options. This review highlights phage therapy as a promising approach to managing MDR bacterial infections in cancer patients. Once widely used, phage therapy has recently regained attention as a targeted antimicrobial strategy that can specifically eliminate harmful bacteria while preserving the beneficial microbiota. Phages work by directly lysing bacteria, disrupting biofilms, and synergizing with antibiotics to restore bacterial susceptibility. These mechanisms make phage therapy especially appealing for treating infections that complicate cancer treatments. However, the clinical application of phage therapy faces challenges such as variability in phage-host interactions, regulatory hurdles, and immune responses in patients. This review identifies gaps in current research regarding the use of phage therapy for MDR infections in cancer patients. By examining recent innovations, therapeutic mechanisms, and associated limitations, we provide valuable insights into the potential of phage therapy for improving infection management in oncology. Future research should focus on refining phage delivery methods, assessing long-term safety, and exploring combination therapies to maximize clinical efficacy. Overcoming these challenges could position phage therapy as a valuable complement to existing antimicrobial strategies in cancer care.
多重耐药（MDR）细菌感染是癌症治疗中的一项重大挑战，尤其对于正在接受化疗、放疗或手术的免疫功能低下患者而言。这些感染通常源于长期使用抗生素、医院获得性病原体以及免疫防御功能减弱，从而导致发病率和死亡率上升。随着传统抗生素对多重耐药菌株的疗效降低，迫切需要替代治疗方案。本综述强调噬菌体疗法是一种有望用于治疗癌症患者多重耐药细菌感染的方法。噬菌体疗法曾被广泛应用，最近作为一种靶向抗菌策略重新受到关注，该策略能够特异性地清除有害细菌，同时保留有益微生物群。噬菌体通过直接裂解细菌、破坏生物膜以及与抗生素协同作用来恢复细菌的敏感性。这些机制使得噬菌体疗法对于治疗使癌症治疗复杂化的感染特别具有吸引力。然而，噬菌体疗法的临床应用面临诸多挑战，例如噬菌体 - 宿主相互作用的变异性、监管障碍以及患者的免疫反应。本综述指出了当前关于噬菌体疗法用于癌症患者多重耐药感染研究中的空白。通过研究近期的创新成果、治疗机制以及相关局限性，我们为噬菌体疗法在改善肿瘤学感染管理方面的潜力提供了有价值的见解。未来的研究应聚焦于优化噬菌体递送方法、评估长期安全性以及探索联合疗法以最大化临床疗效。克服这些挑战可能使噬菌体疗法成为癌症护理中现有抗菌策略的有价值补充。
