Emerging Applications of Chitosan-Based Nanocomposites in Multifarious Cancer Diagnosis and Therapeutics

Abstract

Cancer, a debilitating disease by uncontrolled cell differentiation in the body, has been described to have over 200 different characteristic manifestations and clinical types. Conventional treatment strategies like chemotherapy, surgery, and radiotherapy (applying radiations) have been employed to treat the majority of the malignancies but acute side effects like hair loss, anaemia, oedema, bruising, fatigue, etc., have compelled scientists all around the world to look for alternate treatment regimes. Recent developments in nanoscience have revealed it to be highly effective in the detection and cure of cancers. One such class of nanomaterials that possesses a lot of potential in the biomedical domain is nanocomposites which can be roughly defined as a combination of nanoscale substances having no less than one dimension in the nanoscale range that are arranged in terms of a polymeric matrix, with the materials being in various combinations of organic and inorganic origin. Their rise in demand and research is because of their unusual properties and flexible nature that is relevant in the biomedical landscape. When associated with other biomaterials, they become even more functionally advantageous and the most promising one in cancer diagnostics, and treatment is chitosan. Chitosan, being a biopolymer, is produced by deacetylating chitin, a widely found polymeric form of N-acetylglucosamine which contains active functional groups that are highly susceptible to chemical reactions. This results in many unique properties like biocompatibility, biodegradability, non-toxicity, antimicrobial activity, etc. Thus, this chapter focusses on the up-gradation of nanocomposite properties when introduced with chitosan along with highlighting the multifarious uses of these chitosan-based nanocomposites in the domain of biomedicine, with special emphasis on cancer diagnostics and treatment. The chapter also aims to put into perspective, the recent developments in these biomaterials and discusses their functionalities and attributes whilst describing their applications in cancer healthcare concerning future advancements.