Rare earth derived porous metal-organic-frameworks (RE-MOFs) as a smart nanobiomaterials for cancer therapy: Recent trends

Rare earth metal-organic frameworks (RE-MOFs) have sparked a lot of study significance owing to their extrinsic features (e.g., stable porosity, tailorable pore size/shape, obtainable Lewis acidic sites, luminescence, magneticity, and intrinsic porosity). RE-MOFs are a subclass of MOFs comprised of exceptional characteristics prominent in MOF chemistry which are distinguished owing to their fascinating architectural assemblies instigated by the varied coordination counts of their metal clusters, thus differentiating them from other MOFs for cancer therapies. As a result, RE-derived MOFs are recognized as promising candidates for cancer treatments. This review will emphasize current advancements in the synthesis of RE-MOFs and RE doped/surface engineered MOFs as well as their distinguishing properties for improved clinical applications. The potential values of all these themes will be thoroughly investigated in particular, with a focus on cancer therapies based on the comparative assessment of the associated literature. Eventually, challenges and future viewpoints will be critically discussed concerning their effectual utilization as smart nanobiomaterials for advanced cancer drug delivery applications. [Display omitted] •Summarizes recent update of porous RE-MOF in cancer therapy.•Various drugs loaded, target ligand attachment and surface functionalization reviewed.•Roles of RE-MOF in cancer drug delivery are presented.•Future prospects of RE-MOF in cancer therapy are discussed.