Nanoparticles in pancreatic cancer therapy: a detailed and elaborated review on patent literature

Abstract

Introduction: Nanotechnology may open up new avenues for overcoming the challenges of pancreatic cancer therapy as a broad arsenal of anticancer medicines fail to realize their full therapeutic potential in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma due to the formation of multiple resistance mechanisms inside the tumor. Many studies have reported the successful use of various nano formulations in pancreatic cancer therapy.

Areas covered: This review covers all the major nanotechnology-based patent litrature available on renowned patent data bases like Patentscope and Espacenet, through the time period of 2007-2022. This is an entirely patent centric review, and it includes both clinical and non-clinical data available on nanotechnology-based therapeutics and diagnostic tools for pancreatic cancer.

Expert opinion: For the sake of understanding, the patents are categorized under various formulation-specific heads like metallic/non-metallic nanoparticles, polymeric nanoparticles, liposomes, carbon nanotubes, protein nanoparticles and liposomes. This distinguishes one specific nanoparticle type from another and makes this review a one-of-a-kind comprehensive patent compilation that has not been reported so far in the history of nanotechnological formulations in pancreatic cancer.

Keywords: Pancreatic cancer; carbon dots; dendrimers; liposomes; nano-formulations; nanotechnology; patents; tumor -microenvironment.