Old wine in new bottles: Advanced drug delivery systems for disulfiram-based cancer therapy

Disulfiram (DSF) is an FDA-approved drug that has been repurposed for cancer treatment.
It showed excellent anticancer efficacy in combination with copper ions (Cu). Several active clinical trials testing the anticancer efficacy of DSF against various cancers are underway. In this review article, we summarized different delivery strategies for DSF-based cancer therapy. In many studies, DSF and Cu were delivered in two separate formulations. DSF and Cu formed copper diethyldithiocarbamate [Cu(DDC)2] complex which was reported as a major active anticancer ingredient for DSF/Cu combination therapy.

Various delivery systems for DSF and Cu were developed to enhance their delivery into tumors. The administration of preformed Cu(DDC)2 complex was also explored to achieve better anticancer efficacy. Several studies developed formulations that were capable of delivering Cu(DDC)2 complex in a single formulation. These novel formulations will address drug delivery challenges and have great potential to improve the efficacy of DSF-based cancer therapy. DSF is an off-patent drug molecule. The novel drug formulations of DSF will also serve as a good strategy for developing intellectual properties which will be critical for product development and commercialization. More on drug delivery systems for disulfiram-based cancer therapy