Impact of Stimuli-Responsive Biomaterials in Gynecological Cancer Therapy

Gynecological cancers, predominantly cervical, ovarian, uterine, and vaginal, are among the most challenging cancers to treat due to their complex anatomical position. Owing to high recurrence tendency, total eradication of gynecological cancer forecasts the inclusion of enhanced biomaterials. This could be accomplished by surface modification, bio-functionalization, and binding of ligands for targeted delivery. Alternatively, conventional therapies to treat cancer fail to reach the tumor microenvironment due to non-specificity, causing severe off-target toxicity. Over the last decade, extensive molecular analysis of gynecological cancer has identified several targets for strategizing nanomedicines. Further advancement in intelligent drug delivery systems with innovative stimuli-responsive biomaterials for target-specific release is cutting-edge research. Stimuli-responsive biomaterials are the novel platform in clinics benefitting higher bioavailability of anticancer molecules in the tumor microenvironment, eliminating systemic toxicity, and enhancing biodistribution in the body. Moreover, precisely controlled release of anticancer drugs, genes, or biomolecules on a stimuli-dependent response can reduce host tissue damage and unnecessary drug or nanoparticle aggregation. Based on their physicochemical properties, such biomaterials can further be categorized as endogenous and exogenous. This review article mainly focuses on the progress of the design and development of such stimuli-responsive biomaterials in gynecological cancer therapy. The therapeutic aspects, limitations, and prospects of such biomaterials have also been summarized. We also consolidate biomaterials given during gynecological therapy, their clinical interventions, and the scope for FDA regulatory adherence to facilitate their advent for large-scale clinical application.