Advancing Cancer Treatment: Enhanced Combination Therapy through Functionalized Porous Nanoparticles

Cancer remains a major global health challenge, necessitating the development of innovative treatment strategies. This review focuses on the functionalization of porous nanoparticles for combination therapy, a promising approach to enhance cancer treatment efficacy while mitigating the limitations associated with conventional methods. Combination therapy, integrating multiple treatment modalities such as chemotherapy, phototherapy, immunotherapy, and others, has emerged as an effective strategy to address the shortcomings of individual treatments. The unique properties of mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSN) and other porous materials, like nanoparticles coated with mesoporous silica (NP@MS), metal–organic frameworks (MOF), mesoporous platinum nanoparticles (mesoPt), and carbon dots (CDs), are being explored for drug solubility, bioavailability, targeted delivery, and controlled drug release. Recent advancements in the functionalization of mesoporous nanoparticles with ligands, biomaterials, and polymers are reviewed here, highlighting their role in enhancing the efficacy of combination therapy. Various research has demonstrated the effectiveness of these nanoparticles in co-delivering drugs and photosensitizers, achieving targeted delivery, and responding to multiple stimuli for controlled drug release. This review introduces the synthesis and functionalization methods of these porous nanoparticles, along with their applications in combination therapy.