Prostate cancer (PCa) is one of the most commonly diagnosed cancers and is the fifth common cause of cancer-related mortality in men. Current methods for PCa treatment are insufficient owing to the challenges related to the non-specificity, instability and side effects caused by the drugs and therapy agents. These drawbacks can be mitigated by the design of a suitable drug delivery system that can ensure targeted delivery and minimise side effects. Silica based nanoparticles (SBNPs) have emerged as one of the most versatile materials for drug delivery due to their tunable porosities, high surface area and tremendous capacity to load various sizes and chemistry of drugs. This review gives a brief overview of the diagnosis and current treatment strategies for PCa outlining their existing challenges. It critically analyzes the design, development and application of pure, modified and hybrid SBNPs based drug delivery systems in the treatment of PCa, their advantages and limitations.

中文翻译：

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基于二氧化硅的纳米颗粒作为前列腺癌治疗的药物传递载体

前列腺癌 (PCa) 是最常见的癌症之一，是男性癌症相关死亡的第五大常见原因。由于与药物和治疗剂引起的非特异性、不稳定性和副作用相关的挑战，目前用于 PCa 治疗的方法是不够的。这些缺点可以通过设计合适的给药系统来减轻，该系统可以确保靶向给药并最大限度地减少副作用。二氧化硅基纳米粒子 (SBNP) 因其可调节的孔隙率、高表面积和装载各种尺寸和化学性质的药物的巨大能力而成为最通用的药物输送材料之一。本综述简要概述了 PCa 的诊断和当前治疗策略，概述了其现有挑战。它批判性地分析了设计，