Tackling Breast Cancer with Gold Nanoparticles: Twinning Synthesis and Particle Engineering With Efficacy

Abstract

Abstract: World Health Organization rate breast cancer as the most prevalent cancer despite its dominance in women. Surgery, hormonal treatment, chemo, and radiation therapy are the existing key-players in its management. Site-directed nanotherapeutics engineered with multidimensional functionality are now the forerunners in breast cancer diagnosis and treatment. Gold nanoparticles with its unique colloidal, optical, quantum, magnetic, mechanical, and electrical properties have become the most valuable weapon of this arsenal. Their superiority is supported by facts like facile modulation of shape and size, high degree of reproducibility and stability, biocompatibility, and ease of particle engineering to induce multifunctionality. Additionally surface plasmon oscillation and high atomic number of gold provides a distinct edge for tailor made diagnosis, therapy or theranostic applications in breast cancer like photothermal therapy, radiotherapy, molecular labeling, imaging, and sensing. Though pre-clinical and clinical data are exciting for nano-dimensional gold their clinical translation is hampered by toxicity signs in major organs like liver, kidney and spleen. This has instigated global scientific brainstorming to explore feasible particle synthesis and engineering techniques to simultaneously improve the efficacy, versatility and widen the safety window of the gold nanoparticles. Present work marks the first study of gold nanoparticle design and its maneuvering techniques with their impact on pharmacodynamics character assisting a clear-cut scientific roadmap for their fast-track entry into clinical practice. Keywords: Breast cancer, Gold nanoparticles, Particle engineering, Photothermal therapy, Toxicity.