A Promising Platform of Magnetic Nanofluid and Ultrasonic Treatment for Cancer Hyperthermia Therapy: In Vitro and in Vivo Study

Nanoparticle-Mediated Hyperthermia and Cytotoxicity Mechanisms in Cancer

Hyperthermia has the potential to damage cancerous tissue by increasing the body temperature. However, targeting cancer cells whilst protecting the surrounding tissues is often challenging, especially when implemented in clinical practice. In this direction, there are data showing that the combination of nanotechnology and hyperthermia offers more successful penetration of nanoparticles in the tumor environment, thus allowing targeted hyperthermia in the region of interest. At the same time, unlike radiotherapy, the use of non-ionizing radiation makes hyperthermia an attractive therapeutic option. This review summarizes the existing literature regarding the use of hyperthermia and nanoparticles in cancer, with a focus on nanoparticle-induced cytotoxicity mechanisms.

Deep Learning for Medical Image-Based Cancer Diagnosis

(1) Background: The application of deep learning technology to realize cancer diagnosis based on medical images is one of the research hotspots in the field of artificial intelligence and computer vision. Due to the rapid development of deep learning methods, cancer diagnosis requires very high accuracy and timeliness as well as the inherent particularity and complexity of medical imaging. A comprehensive review of relevant studies is necessary to help readers better understand the current research status and ideas. (2) Methods: Five radiological images, including X-ray, ultrasound (US), computed tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), positron emission computed tomography (PET), and histopathological images, are reviewed in this paper. The basic architecture of deep learning and classical pretrained models are comprehensively reviewed. In particular, advanced neural networks emerging in recent years, including transfer learning, ensemble learning (EL), graph neural network, and vision transformer (ViT), are introduced. Five overfitting prevention methods are summarized: batch normalization, dropout, weight initialization, and data augmentation. The application of deep learning technology in medical image-based cancer analysis is sorted out. (3) Results: Deep learning has achieved great success in medical image-based cancer diagnosis, showing good results in image classification, image reconstruction, image detection, image segmentation, image registration, and image synthesis. However, the lack of high-quality labeled datasets limits the role of deep learning and faces challenges in rare cancer diagnosis, multi-modal image fusion, model explainability, and generalization. (4) Conclusions: There is a need for more public standard databases for cancer. The pre-training model based on deep neural networks has the potential to be improved, and special attention should be paid to the research of multimodal data fusion and supervised paradigm. Technologies such as ViT, ensemble learning, and few-shot learning will bring surprises to cancer diagnosis based on medical images.

Smart and Multi-Functional Magnetic Nanoparticles for Cancer Treatment Applications: Clinical Challenges and Future Prospects

Iron oxide nanoparticle (IONPs) have become a subject of interest in various biomedical fields due to their magnetism and biocompatibility. They can be utilized as heat mediators in magnetic hyperthermia (MHT) or as contrast media in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and ultrasound (US). In addition, their high drug-loading capacity enabled them to be therapeutic agent transporters for malignancy treatment. Hence, smartening them allows for an intelligent controlled drug release (CDR) and targeted drug delivery (TDD). Smart magnetic nanoparticles (SMNPs) can overcome the impediments faced by classical chemo-treatment strategies, since they can be navigated and release drug via external or internal stimuli. Recently, they have been synchronized with other modalities, e.g., MRI, MHT, US, and for dual/multimodal theranostic applications in a single platform. Herein, we provide an overview of the attributes of MNPs for cancer theranostic application, fabrication procedures, surface coatings, targeting approaches, and recent advancement of SMNPs. Even though MNPs feature numerous privileges over chemotherapy agents, obstacles remain in clinical usage. This review in particular covers the clinical predicaments faced by SMNPs and future research scopes in the field of SMNPs for cancer theranostics.

Near-Infrared Responsive Synergistic Chemo-Phototherapy from Surface-Functionalized Poly(ε-caprolactone)-Poly(d,l-lactic-co-glycolic acid) Composite Nanofibers for Postsurgical Cancer Treatment

The combination of hyperthermia and chemotherapy has attracted significant attention in local cancer treatment following surgical resection. Pyrrole is a potent photothermal agent that can induce a temperature rise at different concentrations in the surrounding medium by absorbing near-infrared radiation (NIR). In this study, poly(ε-caprolactone) (PCL) and poly (d,l-lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) were used to make nanofibers using the electrospinning process. Then, pyrrole in different concentrations of (0.2, 0.4, and 0.6) M was attached to the surface of PCL-PLGA fiber mats by in situ polymerization, which was confirmed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), and X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis. A concentration-dependent local temperature rise was observed using a FLIR camera under near-infrared (NIR) laser irradiation. For the hyperthermia effect, pyrrole concentration (0.06 M) was used for in vitro drug release studies and cell viability assays because under NIR irradiation (2 W/cm², 3 min), it increased the local temperature to around 45 °C. In vitro drug release studies confirmed that NIR irradiation increased the diffusion rate of doxorubicin (DOX) by increasing the environmental temperature above the glass transition temperature of PLGA. In vitro cytotoxicity experiments further confirmed that PCL-PLGA-DOX/PPy fiber mats showed an enhanced inhibitory effect against CT26 and MCF7 cells by the combination of hyperthermia and chemotherapy.

Nanomaterials in cancer: Reviewing the combination of hyperthermia and triggered chemotherapy

Nanoparticle mediated hyperthermia has been explored as a method to increase cancer treatment efficacy by heating tumours inside-out. With that purpose, nanoparticles have been designed and their properties tailored to respond to external stimuli and convert the supplied energy into heat, therefore inducing damage to tumour cells. Moreover, the combination of hyperthermia with chemotherapy has been described as a more effective strategy due to the synergy between the high temperature and the drug's effects, also associated with a remote controlled and on-demand drug release. In this review, the methods behind nanoparticle mediated hyperthermia, namely material design, external stimuli response and energy conversion will be discussed and critically analysed. We will address the most relevant studies on hyperthermia and temperature triggered drug release for cancer treatment. Finally, the advantages, difficulties and challenges of this therapeutic strategy will be discussed, while giving insight for future developments.