Nano Drug Delivery in Treatment of Oral Cancer, A Review of the Literature

Abstract

Oral Cancer (OC) is a serious and growing problem which constitutes a huge burden on people in more and less economically developed countries alike. The scenario is clearly depicted from the increase in the expected number of new cases in the US diagnosed with OC from 49,670 people in 2016, to 49,750 cases in 2017. The situation is even more alarming in India, with 75,000 to 80,000 new cases being reported every year, thus making it the OC capital of the world. Leukoplakia, erythroplakia, oral lichen planus, oral submucous fibrosis, discoid lupus erythmatosus, hereditary disorders such as dyskeratosis congenital and epidermolisys bullosa are highlighted by WHO expert working group as the predisposing factors increasing the risk of OC. Consumption of tobacco and alcohol, genetic factors, and human papilloma virus are assigned as the factors contributing to the aetiology of OC. On the other hand, pathogenesis of OC involves not only apoptosis but also pain, inflammation and oxidative stress. Inspite of current treatment options (surgery, radiotherapy, and chemotherapy), OC is often associated with recurrence and formation of secondary primary tumours resulting in poor overall survival rates (∼50%). The intervention of nano technology-based drug delivery systems as therapeutics for cancers is often viewed as a cutting edge for technologists. Though ample literature on the usefulness of nano-coutured cancer therapeutics, rarely any product is in pipeline. Yet, despite all the hype about nanotechnology, there are few ongoing trials. This review discusses the current and future trends of nano-based drug delivery for the treatment of OC.

Utility of Cell and Molecular Biology Research for the Diagnosis and Therapy of Oral Premalignant Lesions

“…Cox-2 expression is stimulated by mutagenic and proinflammatory factors, such as cytokine IL-6, dependent on NF-κB activation, the results of this study supporting this finding [13,16,18]. Increased IL-6 and Cox-2 levels identified in erosive actinic cheilitis lesions can be causally related to exposure to UVB, radiation that stimulates both Cox-2 and NF-kB expression [16].…”

“…IL-6, Th2 cytokine (Thelper 2) is considered a tumor marker with a sensitivity of 60-70% and a specificity of 58-90%. However, the available studies used to define the diagnostic and prognostic value of this molecule are few and controversial [3,[13][14][15]. IL-6 activity is frequently related to the concept of "epigenetic field" existing in the oral cavity, although the idea that IL-6-mediated suppression of signaling or inhibition of chronic inflammation influence the epigenetic changes is not supported.…”

Flavopereirine Suppresses the Progression of Human Oral Cancer by Inhibiting the JAK-STAT Signaling Pathway via Targeting LASP1

“…In the last decades, oral cancer has become a serious disease that brings a huge burden on people's health. 22 Therefore, it is urgently needed to identify and develop new and effective anti-cancer agents to prevent oral cancer progression. Migration and invasion of cancer cells into surrounding tissues is an essential step in cancer metastasis.…”

A bibliometric analysis on studies of nanomedicine applications in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma

“…Nanomedicine, which can provide enhanced drug efficiency and decreased toxicity, has emerged as an alternative to conventional therapeutics (5)(6)(7). Nanocarriers can improve the stability of drugs and targeted delivery, and offers the potential to reduce drug resistance via higher intracellular drug accumulation (7)(8)(9). Chemoprevention for HNSCC mainly uses natural products such as curcumin and ellagic acid, which have attracted significant attention in this field.…”

“…Nanotechnologybased systems as diagnostic and therapeutic agents present a viable alternative. Indeed, several nanomedicine platforms have offered the potential to improve diagnostic accuracy, therapeutic efficacy, and tolerability (5)(6)(7)(8)(9)(10).…”