A2 Refereed review article in a scientific journal
Recent Progress in the Development of Metal-Based Radiosensitizations for Cancer Therapy: A Review
Authors: Wu, Xiao-Xia; Zhang, Ding-Hu; Hu, Chuan; Ding, Yi-Nan; Chen, Kun; Jiang, Yi; Luo, Jun; Cao, Fei; Hao, Wei-Yuan; Zhong, Bin-Yan; Lin, Jie; Xu, Dong; Zheng, Jia-Ping
Publisher: Springer Nature
Publication year: 2026
Journal: Rare Metals
Article number: e70039
Volume: 45
Issue: 1
ISSN: 1001-0521
eISSN: 1867-7185
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/rar2.70039
Publication's open availability at the time of reporting: Open Access
Publication channel's open availability : Partially Open Access publication channel
Web address : https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/rar2.70039
Self-archived copy’s web address: https://research.utu.fi/converis/portal/detail/Publication/515956384
Self-archived copy's licence: CC BY
Self-archived copy's version: Publisher`s PDF
Radiotherapy (RT) remains an indispensable means in cancer treatment; however, its therapeutic efficacy is often limited by tumor radioresistance and side effect of damage to healthy tissue. The advances in nanotechnology have propelled metal radiosensitizers to forefront of precision medicine. These metal-based radiosensitizations enhance RT efficacy through multifaceted mechanisms of physical dose amplification, chemical catalysis, and biological modulation. Compared to conventional way by employing high atomic number (high-Z) metal materials to enhance energy deposition, emerging strategies such as X-ray induced radiodynamic therapy (X-RDT) and Cerenkov radiation activated photodynamics therapy (CR-PDT), have been developed to synergize RT with deep-tumor reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation under lower radiation dose. In this review, we highlight recent progress in metal-based radiosensitization for cancer therapy, discuss key challenges hindering clinical translation, and emphasize innovations in material design, combinatorial therapies, and clinical oncology. Collectively, these advances may unlock the full potential of metal-based radiosensitizers, paving the way for curative RT with minimal damage to normal tissues.
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Funding information in the publication:
This work is financially supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 82202274, 82472078, and 22161016), China Postdoctoral Science Foundation (Grant Nos. 2023M743559, and 2024M763333), the Natural Science Foundation of Zhejiang Province (Grant Nos. LQ23H180003, LTGD24H160009, and LQN25H160008), the Medicine Health Science and Technology Project of Zhejiang Province (Grant No. 2023KY600), the member of Youth Innovation Promotion Association Foundation of CAS, China (Grant No. 2023310), and the Key Scientific and Technological Special Project of Ningbo City (Grant No. 2023Z209).
