Mechanism of anticancer therapy: from conventional to targeted drug delivery system

Millions of humans are known to die worldwide due to different types of cancer. Cancer is the uncontrollable growth of cells, and these cells may spread and invade other tissues of the body, causing metastasis. Though treatments have advanced drastically, the survival rate of the affected is still low. Conventional treatment is the most commonly used approach and has its own pros and cons. For more effective treatment, combinations of two or more treatment methods are used. This combination may be one of conventional, complementary, or target-specific methods. The advancement in nanotechnology has provided a leap in cancer research. Scientists have begun using nanoparticles of different elements for detection, treatment, and drug delivery applications based on the properties of these elements. The mechanism and application of different treatment methods used against cancerous cells are explained in this article.