Natural and Synthetic Polysaccharide-Based Conjugates for Cancer Treatment

Cancer is a global health issue. Searching for new anticancer drugs is essential for treating cancer. Novel pharmaceutical technology is used to develop anticancer drugs. Plant polysaccharide conjugates are a cutting-edge pharmaceutical technology for medication development. There are many articles and current research on using plant polysaccharide conjugates to deliver anti-cancer medicines. Anticancer drug administration by polysaccharides derived from plant conjugation is effective, non-toxic, biodegradable, hydrophilic, low-risk, and precise. To treat various cancers, chemotherapy is often combined with hormone therapy, surgery, and radiation. Due to its non-specific targeting, low absorption, narrow therapy indices, and high dosage requirements, chemotherapy can cause serious side effects. New polysaccharide carriers target cancer cells, reducing chemotherapy side effects. Multiple functional groups in polysaccharides can be chemically altered to improve bioavailability and stability. This alteration helps deliver drugs to cancer tissues. Polysaccharides such poly lactic- co -glycolic acid pullulan, chitosan, cyclodextrin, alginates, hyaluronic acid, pectin, dextran, guar gum, poly- l -lactic acid, and cellulose have been used in cancer drug delivery systems. Polysaccharide-based nanomaterials degrade into non-toxic derivatives in biological settings and are easily removed. Polysaccharide-based drug delivery systems can release multiple medicines sequentially or simultaneously, resulting in synergistic effects. Polysaccharides can carry proteins, medicinal compounds, peptides, and growth factors to improve targeted therapy. This chapter covers polysaccharide-based anti-cancer medication carriers’ latest advances.