Breast Cancer Progression and Its Theranostic Management via Folate-Directed Targeting of Glycoprotein Receptor

Breast cancer continues to rank among the most common and complex cancers worldwide. A promising approach is the direct delivery of drugs to cancer cells via specially designed nanocarriers that can target specific receptors on their surface, like folate receptors. When combined with other therapies, these functionalized nanocarriers can increase the effectiveness of treatment by more precisely targeting cancer cells than traditional methods that rely on passive targeting. Folate receptors are glycoproteins with four isoforms, for which both laboratory and animal models have shown encouraging results in research. The numerous chemical methods for attaching folic acid (FA) and enhancing drug delivery in folic acid-modified nanocarriers for breast cancer are examined in this review. Additionally, it examines how these smart carriers combine chemotherapy with alternative therapies like photodynamic therapies and state-of-the-art theranostics. The review highlights how important it is to carry out comprehensive testing to ensure that these innovations can successfully move from the lab to real clinical settings, even though the potential is evident.