Recent Advances in the Chemical Synthesis and Evaluation of Anticancer Nucleoside Analogues

Nucleoside analogues have proven to be highly successful chemotherapeutic agents in the treatment of a wide variety of cancers. Several such compounds, including gemcitabine and cytarabine, are the go-to option in first-line treatments. However, these materials do have limitations and the development of next generation compounds remains a topic of significant interest and necessity. Herein, we discuss recent advances in the chemical synthesis and biological evaluation of nucleoside analogues as potential anticancer agents. Focus is paid to 4 '-heteroatom substitution of the furanose oxygen, 2 '-, 3 '-, 4 '- and 5 '-position ring modifications and the development of new prodrug strategies for these materials.