Review: doxorubicin delivery systems based on chitosan for cancer therapy.
OBJECTIVE
This review sheds insight into an increasingly popular polymer that has been widely explored as a potential drug delivery system. The abundant, biodegradable and biocompatible polysaccharide chitosan, with many other favourable properties, has been favoured as a drug delivery system for the purposes of encapsulating and delivery of doxorubicin with reduced side-effects.


RESULTS
Doxorubicin is frequently used as a frontline chemotherapeutic agent against a variety of cancers. It has largely been able to demonstrate anti-tumour effects, though there are major shortfalls of doxorubicin, which include serious side-effects such as cardiomyopathy and myelosuppression, and also an ever-present danger of extravasation during drug administration. In view of this, drug delivery systems are currently being explored as alternative methods of drug delivery in a bid to more effectively direct doxorubicin to the specific lesion site and reduce its systemic side-effects. Liposomes and dendrimers have been tested as potential carriers for doxorubicin; however they are not the focus of this review.


CONCLUSIONS
Recent advancements in doxorubicin and chitosan technology have shown some preliminary though promising results for cancer therapy.
Tan
Mei Lin
ML
Department of Orthopaedics and Surgery, University of Melbourne, St Vincent's Hospital Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia.
Choong
Peter F M
PF
Dass
Crispin R
CR
D000818:Animals; D000903:Antibiotics, Antineoplastic / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D048271:Chitosan / Q000737:chemistry*; D004317:Doxorubicin / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D004337:Drug Carriers / Q000737:chemistry*; D006801:Humans; D015394:Molecular Structure; D053758:Nanoparticles / Q000737:chemistry; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy*; D013678:Technology, Pharmaceutical / Q000639:trends
D000903:Antibiotics, Antineoplastic; D004337:Drug Carriers; D004317:Doxorubicin; D048271:Chitosan