Immunoliposomes as targeted delivery vehicles for cancer therapeutics (review)

Advances in liposome technology over the last decade has seen the development of stealth liposomes for drug delivery and cationic liposomes for gene delivery. Many of these liposome formulations are now in clinical trials for the treatment of a variety of malignancies. Whilst some clinical efficacy has been demonstrated, the goal of specific tumor targeting is yet to be attained. For this reason, antibodies have been attached to the surface of liposomes to produce immunoliposomes. These liposomes have shown preferential binding to specific tumor cells in animal models. The construction of the immunoliposome, and in particular the optimal method of antibody coupling to its surface is, however, yet to be determined. Despite these difficulties, immunoliposomes have demonstrated anti-tumor properties, both in vitro and in vivo, and show great promise as targeted delivery vehicles for the treatment of cancer.