Emerging chemotherapy agents in lung cancer: nanoparticle therapeutics for non-small cell lung cancer

The introduction of nanotechnology has brought about major progress in modern medicine. Nanotechnology involves the use of nanosized materials, or those measured at the level of 1 nanometer, or one-billionth of a meter. In the treatment of cancer, nanotechnology has been used to deliver cytotoxic agents with higher drug content, improved targeting to tumor sites, and decreased accumulation into non-tumor organs. These nanoparticle chemotherapy agents have superior efficacy and less toxicity compared to standard chemotherapy, and have been studied in various solid and hematologic malignancies. A number of nanoparticle chemotherapy drugs have been developed in recent years, a number of which have had success in lung cancer as well as other tumor sites. The first of these to be approved for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is Abraxane, or albumin-bound paclitaxel. In this review, we discuss the rationale and the approach for the use of nanoparticle technology in chemotherapy, as well as the unique advantages that these drugs provide. Afterwards, we will focus on emerging nanoparticle agents that have demonstrated promising clinical data for the treatment of advanced NSCLC.