Evaluation of nanotoxicological assessment as a Prognostic Tool in solid tumors

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.22812104

Keywords:

nanotoxicology, solid tumors, nanoparticle biodistribution, EPR effect, prognostic biomarker

Abstract

Graphical abstract

Background: Nanomedicine relies on the enhanced permeability and retention (EPR) effect to concentrate nanoparticle-delivered therapy in solid tumors, but biodistribution meta-analyses show accumulation is far lower and more heterogeneous than early estimates assumed [2].

Objective: This review synthesizes evidence on whether assays developed for nanotoxicological safety assessment, biodistribution imaging, immunotoxicity and clearance profiling, also function as prognostic tools for solid-tumor patients.

Methods: We conducted a narrative synthesis of 23 peer-reviewed sources spanning physicochemical characterization, biodistribution and EPR imaging, immunotoxicity and clearance, and clinical accumulation-outcome correlation in solid-tumor oncology.

Findings: Median tumor delivery efficiency across published biodistribution studies is approximately 0.7% of injected dose [2]; accumulation is governed by tumor pathophysiology rather than nanoparticle identity alone [5,6]; and companion-imaging trials using ferumoxytol and 64Cu-MM-302 tracers show pretreatment accumulation predicts treatment response [3,4].

Conclusions: Nanotoxicological assessment carries genuine prognostic value in solid-tumor nanomedicine, but the clinical validation base remains small and EPR-dependent accumulation fails in a meaningful subset of tumors, arguing for prospective, longitudinal use of these assays rather than one-time safety clearance [13,10].

References

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Published

2026-05-05

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