Tuning nanoparticles to each tumor barrier

A new crop of papers suggests the next gains in tumor drug delivery will come from matching particle design to the distinct constraints each tissue, cell type, and signaling pathway imposes — treating barriers not as obstacles to bypass but as interfaces to engineer.

Efficient delivery of therapeutic payloads to solid tumors — particularly metastatic disease and sites protected by complex tissue or microenvironmental barriers — remains a major bottleneck in cancer. ...