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Review

Advanced Hydrogels in Breast Cancer Therapy

1
Department of Translational Medicine and Physiology, Elson S. Floyd College of Medicine, Washington State University, Spokane, WA 99202, USA
2
Doctor of Medicine Program, Elson S. Floyd College of Medicine, Washington State University, Spokane, WA 99202, USA
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Gels 2024, 10(7), 479; https://doi.org/10.3390/gels10070479
Submission received: 1 July 2024 / Revised: 13 July 2024 / Accepted: 16 July 2024 / Published: 19 July 2024

Abstract

Breast cancer is the most common malignancy among women and is the second leading cause of cancer-related death for women. Depending on the tumor grade and stage, breast cancer is primarily treated with surgery and antineoplastic therapy. Direct or indirect side effects, emotional trauma, and unpredictable outcomes accompany these traditional therapies, calling for therapies that could improve the overall treatment and recovery experiences of patients. Hydrogels, biomimetic materials with 3D network structures, have shown great promise for augmenting breast cancer therapy. Hydrogel implants can be made with adipogenic and angiogenic properties for tissue integration. 3D organoids of malignant breast tumors grown in hydrogels retain the physical and genetic characteristics of the native tumors, allowing for post-surgery recapitulation of the diseased tissues for precision medicine assessment of the responsiveness of patient-specific cancers to antineoplastic treatment. Hydrogels can also be used as carrier matrices for delivering chemotherapeutics and immunotherapeutics or as post-surgery prosthetic scaffolds. The hydrogel delivery systems could achieve localized and controlled medication release targeting the tumor site, enhancing efficacy and minimizing the adverse effects of therapeutic agents delivered by traditional procedures. This review aims to summarize the most recent advancements in hydrogel utilization for breast cancer post-surgery tissue reconstruction, tumor modeling, and therapy and discuss their limitations in clinical translation.
Keywords: hydrogel; breast cancer; tissue engineering; regenerative medicine; 3D bioprinting; 3D culture; organoids; drug delivery; chemotherapy; immunotherapy hydrogel; breast cancer; tissue engineering; regenerative medicine; 3D bioprinting; 3D culture; organoids; drug delivery; chemotherapy; immunotherapy

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MDPI and ACS Style

Gao, X.; Caruso, B.R.; Li, W. Advanced Hydrogels in Breast Cancer Therapy. Gels 2024, 10, 479. https://doi.org/10.3390/gels10070479

AMA Style

Gao X, Caruso BR, Li W. Advanced Hydrogels in Breast Cancer Therapy. Gels. 2024; 10(7):479. https://doi.org/10.3390/gels10070479

Chicago/Turabian Style

Gao, Xiangyu, Benjamin R. Caruso, and Weimin Li. 2024. "Advanced Hydrogels in Breast Cancer Therapy" Gels 10, no. 7: 479. https://doi.org/10.3390/gels10070479

APA Style

Gao, X., Caruso, B. R., & Li, W. (2024). Advanced Hydrogels in Breast Cancer Therapy. Gels, 10(7), 479. https://doi.org/10.3390/gels10070479

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