Junyi Zhang,1 Kamran Ali,1 Jianwei Wang1,2 

1Department of Surgery, The Fourth Affiliated Hospital of School of Medicine, and International School of Medicine, International Institutes of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Yiwu, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Colorectal Surgery and Oncology, Key Laboratory of Cancer Prevention and Intervention, Ministry of Education, 2nd Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, People’s Republic of China

Correspondence: Jianwei Wang, Department of Colorectal Surgery and Oncology, Key Laboratory of Cancer Prevention and Intervention, Ministry of Education, 2nd Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, People’s Republic of China, Email sypzju@zju.edu.cn

Abstract: Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a common type of gastrointestinal tract (GIT) cancer and poses an enormous threat to human health. Current strategies for metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC) therapy primarily focus on chemotherapy, targeted therapy, immunotherapy, and radiotherapy; however, their adverse reactions and drug resistance limit their clinical application. Advances in nanotechnology have rendered lipid nanoparticles (LNPs) a promising nanomaterial-based drug delivery system for CRC therapy. LNPs can adapt to the biological characteristics of CRC by modifying their formulation, enabling the selective delivery of drugs to cancer tissues. They overcome the limitations of traditional therapies, such as poor water solubility, nonspecific biodistribution, and limited bioavailability. Herein, we review the composition and targeting strategies of LNPs for CRC therapy. Subsequently, the applications of these nanoparticles in CRC treatment including drug delivery, thermal therapy, and nucleic acid-based gene therapy are summarized with examples provided. The last section provides a glimpse into the advantages, current limitations, and prospects of LNPs in the treatment of CRC.

Keywords: lipid nanoparticles, colorectal cancer, tumor targeting, drug delivery, nanotechnology