At the crossroad of nanotechnology and cancer cell membrane coating: Expanding horizons with engineered nanoplatforms for advanced cancer therapy harnessing homologous tumor targeting

The development of targeted drug delivery systems (DDSs) has revolutionized cancer therapy by improving the selectivity of drug delivery to cancer cells, thereby reducing systemic toxicity and improving treatment efficacy. One promising approach involves the use of cancer cell membrane (CCM)-coated nanoplatforms to prepare DDSs for homologous targeting of tumors. These DDSs, which incorporate the CCM, demonstrate high efficacy in tumor targeting through the recognition and binding of tumor-specific receptors on the cell surface. This review provides a comprehensive overview of recent advancements in the development of CCM-coated DDSs for homologous targeting in cancer therapy, encompassing their design, fabrication, and functionalization for enhanced tumor targeting. In addition to homologous targeting, this review highlights several other advantages of CCM-coating and examines strategies for enhancing homologous targeting through combination with other targeting approaches. Furthermore, the review discusses the challenges and future directions in the development of CCM-coated DDSs, and their potential applications in cancer therapy, with a particular focus on the top five deadliest cancer types. Overall, this review demonstrates the immense potential of CCM-coated nanoplatforms for cancer treatment.