Recent advances in small molecule-based targeted therapy for breast cancer

According to the World Health Organization, in 2020, 2.3 million women were diagnosed with breast cancer and 684,996 deaths were reported globally. Breast cancer is the second leading cause of death worldwide, affecting 2.1 million women annually. It is the most prevalent cancer in women, with a record of 7.8 million women living after five years of diagnosis at the end of 2020. Despite the increasing prevalence of breast cancer, a better understanding of breast cancer subtypes over the last decade has translated clinical management into improved personalized care. Early-stage breast cancer diagnosis and effective treatment can increase survival probability to 90%.

Although surgery is the primary treatment method, chemotherapy, radiotherapy and hormone therapy are included in the current practice of breast cancer management. In the last decade, targeted chemotherapy has also become an option to manage some types of cancer. Unlike traditional macromolecule targeted therapy (i.e. antibodies), small molecules have shown a lower risk of developing adverse immunogenicity. In addition, they are easier to chemically modify to obtain clinically suitable pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic profiles.

This Research Topic will focus on the following aspects of small molecule discovery and development as a potential targeted breast cancer treatments. The topic welcomes manuscripts related to breast cancers and addressing (but not exclusively) the following themes:

• Single-, dual- and multi-targeting small molecule drug design, synthesis and discovery
• Repurposing drug approaches
• Development of small molecules derived from natural compounds
• Small molecule imaging agents and diagnostic tools
• Target-prediction and mechanism of action of small molecules

Keywords: breast cancer, small molecules, drug development, drug discovery, pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics, single-targeting drug discovery, dual-targeting drug discovery, multi-targeting drug discovery, drug repurposing, imaging agents, diagnostic tools

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.