Efficacy of Nano-phytochemicals Over Pure Phytochemicals Against Various Cancers: Current Trends and Future Prospects

Abstract

Cancer, known to be the most disastrous disease worldwide, accounts for about 7.6 million mortalities per year. Developing nations are facing more incidences of cancer and represent about 60% of the deaths. Researchers and scientists in the pharmaceutical industries are conducting extensive investigations to develop a definitive drug that can destroy tumors without affecting normal healthy cells. Phytochemicals possess significant anticancer potential, and their consumption is associated with the reduction of the progression of some cancers, but they have some limitations for being target-effective drugs, such as lower solubility, poor penetration power, restricted therapeutic potential, and ready absorption by normal cells. The impact of nanotechnology has significantly increased in various fields of science, especially the medical sciences, in the progress for target-specific drug release systems. Some promising nano-phytochemicals and nano-compounds, ensured by their significant cytotoxicity on various cancers, provide a novel approach in management and improvement of potent chemopreventive cancer drugs that are target specific to cancerous cells only. This chapter aims to summarize the anticancer properties of some potent phytochemicals, their mode of action, and some recent progress on nano-phytochemical-based nano-medicines and their effectiveness compared to the pure phytochemicals in the future treatment of various cancers.