Radio frequency responsive nano-biomaterials for cancer therapy

Radiofrequency (RF)-assisted cancer therapy is well-known in the medical field as it is non-hazardous and can penetrate tissues, enabling a deeply rooted cancer treatment. However, the current treatment regimen is nonspecific and invasive, making it difficult for patients to undergo the RF ablation procedure. Recently, there has been tremendous attention given on replacing RF probes (through which the RF current passes into the tumors) with metallic nanoparticles (NPs) such as gold and iron oxide. These metallic NPs can be combined with stimuli responsive polymers to have a simultaneous drug delivery to tumors and better thermal ablation. This review will give a brief overview on the various nanobiomaterials based on metals and polymers and their composites in RF-assisted cancer therapy. Special attention has been given on RF responsive composite nanomaterials. Besides these, the importance of RF-assisted drug delivery using the nanobiomaterials for cancer therapy, as well as the advantages and future perspectives of these materials are discussed in detail. (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.