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Review
. 2023 Apr 22;9(5):352.
doi: 10.3390/gels9050352.

Gel Formulations for Topical Treatment of Skin Cancer: A Review

Marta Slavkova  1 , Borislav Tzankov  1 , Teodora Popova  1 , Christina Voycheva  1
Affiliations
Review

Gel Formulations for Topical Treatment of Skin Cancer: A Review

Marta Slavkova et al. Gels. .

Abstract

Skin cancer, with all its variations, is the most common type of cancer worldwide. Chemotherapy by topical application is an attractive strategy because of the ease of application and non-invasiveness. At the same time, the delivery of antineoplastic agents through the skin is difficult because of their challenging physicochemical properties (solubility, ionization, molecular weight, melting point) and the barrier function of the stratum corneum. Various approaches have been applied in order to improve drug penetration, retention, and efficacy. This systematic review aims at identifying the most commonly used techniques for topical drug delivery by means of gel-based topical formulations in skin cancer treatment. The excipients used, the preparation approaches, and the methods characterizing gels are discussed in brief. The safety aspects are also highlighted. The combinatorial formulation of nanocarrier-loaded gels is also reviewed from the perspective of improving drug delivery characteristics. Some limitations and drawbacks in the identified strategies are also outlined and considered within the future scope of topical chemotherapy.

Keywords: chemical hydrogel; composite gel; physical hydrogel; skin cancer; systematic literature review.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Flow chart of the systematic search strategy according to Page et al. [30].
Figure 2
Figure 2
Skin structure and routes of drug transport through cancerous skin after topical anticancer treatment.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Types of gels used for topical drug delivery in skin cancer treatment according to the systematic search.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Nanocarrier-loaded gels: distribution of nanocomposites (SLN—solid lipid nanoparticles; NLC—nanostructured lipid carrier).
Figure 5
Figure 5
Schematic representation of nanovesicles incorporated within topical gel.
Figure 6
Figure 6
Schematic representation of inorganic nanoparticles incorporated within topical gel.
Figure 7
Figure 7
SEM images showing the application of the technique for the evaluation of hydrogel morphology: (A) polymer powder; (B) lyophilized gel sample at ×250 magnification.
Figure 8
Figure 8
Schematic representation of tape stripping technique.
Figure 9
Figure 9
Schematic representation of Franz-diffusion cell.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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