Hybrid Theranostics Nanomaterials

Abstract

The use of nanotechnology in health and medicine, nanomedicine, is one of the most promising research areas. Therefore, the design of nanomaterials that can treat diseases and, at the same time, allows an accurate diagnosis is a major challenge for the coming decades. This type of nanomaterials, called theranostics, are therapeutic/diagnostic systems of nanometric size that can be used to address various diseases, especially cancer. This is because they can act as nanocarriers transporting poorly soluble drugs until they reach the tumor, thus minimizing the impact on healthy tissues; allowing, in turn, superficial functionalization to avoid their rapid elimination and increase circulation time. This chapter will focus on the design of hybrid theragnostic nanomaterials applied in nanomedicine. For each of them, the importance of the combination between the nanoparticle (inorganic component) and the polymer (organic component), as well as its impact on the selected application will be indicated. In addition, a review of the nanomaterials already approved for clinical use will be provided. Furthermore, we will emphasize current targeting strategies under study within the research community.