Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2025 Jun;201(6):577-588.
doi: 10.1007/s00066-024-02301-y. Epub 2024 Oct 4.

State-of-the-art application of nanoparticles in radiotherapy: a platform for synergistic effects in cancer treatment

Mehrnaz Mostafavi  1 , Farhood Ghazi  2 , Mahboobeh Mehrabifard  3 , Vahid Alivirdiloo  4 , Mobasher Hajiabbasi  5 , Fatemeh Rahimi  6 , Ahmad Mobed  7 , Gholamreza Taheripak  8 , Marzieh Ramezani Farani  9 , Yun Suk Huh  9 , Salar Bakhtiyari  10 , Iraj Alipourfard  11
Affiliations
Review

State-of-the-art application of nanoparticles in radiotherapy: a platform for synergistic effects in cancer treatment

Mehrnaz Mostafavi et al. Strahlenther Onkol. 2025 Jun.

Abstract

Radiotherapy (RT) is a gold standard cancer treatment worldwide. However, RT has limitations and many side effects. Nanoparticles (NPs) have exclusive properties that allow them to be used in cancer therapy. Consequently, the combination of NP and RT opens up a new frontier in cancer treatment. Among NPs, gold nanoparticles (GNPs) are the most extensively studied and are considered ideal radiosensitizers for radiotherapy due to their unique physicochemical properties and high X‑ray absorption. This review analyzes the various roles of NPs as radiosensitizers in radiotherapy of glioblastoma (GBS), prostate cancer, and breast cancer and summarizes recent advances. Furthermore, the underlying mechanisms of NP radiosensitization, including physical, chemical, and biological mechanisms, are discussed, which may provide new directions for next-generation GNP optimization and clinical transformation.

Keywords: Breast cancer; Glioblastoma (GBS); Nanoparticles (NPs); Prostate cancer (PCa); Radiotherapy (RT).

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of interest: M. Mostafavi, F. Ghazi, M. Mehrabifard, V. Alivirdiloo, M. Hajiabbasi, F. Rahimi, A. Mobed, G. Taheripak, M. Ramezani Farani, Y.S. Huh, S. Bakhtiyari, and I. Alipourfard declare that they have no competing interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Illustration of the mechanisms of radiation damage. In the case of the direct effect, IR directly damages the DNA, which, if unrepaired, results in cell death or permanent growth arrest. In the case of the indirect effect, ROS are formed by the radiolysis of a large amount of water and oxygen, and the ROS then damage the DNA. There are many types of DNA damage, such as base change, SSB, DSB, and cross-linkage with protein or with other DNA molecules. (Adapted from [12]). IR ion radiation, ROS reactive oxygen species, SSB single strand break, DSB double strand break
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Differential physicochemical events distinguish FLASH from CONV irradiation. (Adapted from [14]). ROS reactive oxygen species
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Schematic illustration of a nanoparticle-enhanced radiotherapy system. (Adapted from [43])
Fig. 4
Fig. 4
Tumor-targeted bismuth nanoparticles enhanced by X‑ray irradiation for breast cancer. (Adapted from [59]). RBC red blood cell, F-RBC-Bismuth NPs folate red blood cell bismuth nanoparticles
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Chhikara BS, Parang K (2023) Global cancer statistics 2022: the trends projection analysis, chemical. Biol Lett 10(1):451–451
    1. Siegel RL, Miller KD, Fuchs HE, Jemal A (2021) Cancer statistics, 2021. CA Cancer J Clin 71(1):7–33 - PubMed
    1. Shakil MS, Mahmud KM, Sayem M, Niloy MS, Halder SK, Hossen MS, Uddin MF, Hasan MA (2021) Using chitosan or chitosan derivatives in cancer therapy. Polysaccharides 2(4):795–816
    1. Sankey EW, Tsvankin V, Grabowski MM, Nayar G, Batich KA, Risman A, Champion CD, Salama AKS, Goodwin CR, Fecci PE (2019) Operative and peri-operative considerations in the management of brain metastasis. Cancer Med 8(16):6809–6831 - PMC - PubMed
    1. Liu Y, Zhang P, Li F, Jin X, Li J, Chen W, Li Q (2018) Metal-based nanoenhancers for future radiotherapy: radiosensitizing and synergistic effects on tumor cells. Theranostics 8(7):1824 - PMC - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources