Nanocarriers for ovarian cancer active drug targeting

Ovarian cancer ranks fifth amongst the most fatal form of female cancers in Europe and the United States. It is characterized by the silent development of a tumor in the ovarian/fallopian area followed by the dissemination of micrometastases in the peritoneal space. Currently, the treatment consists in surgical debulking in combination with chemotherapy. Unfortunately, most women will undergo a relapse, and the chances of a cure are slim. Nanocarriers have been proposed to improve the efficacy of chemotherapy. They offer the advantage of passive biodistribution at the tumor site due to enhanced permeation and retention effect. Functionalizing drug delivery systems with chemical moieties that are able to recognize molecular elements expressed specifically by cancer cells or structures involved in tumor development may enhance biodistribution to cancer sites, further improving therapeutic efficiency. In this review, the characteristics of ovarian cancer and current treatments are described. The potential targets identified to inhibit ovarian cancer development and the main advances obtained with targeted nanocarriers are also presented. Several strategies were tested using either versatile ligands or very specific targets. Promising data are presented; most of them demonstrate the in vitro proof of concept, while some confirm the potential of this approach with in vivo evidence.