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[8]
Figure 1. Gene therapy for prostate cancer .
dramatically reduced surgical complications. More so, radiotherapy causes damage to surrounding tissues,
leading to bowel, bladder, and sexual dysfunction. Conventional treatments often fall short in advanced
prostate cancer due to the cancer’s ability to develop resistance. For instance, castration-resistant prostate
cancer (CRPC) continues to grow despite androgen deprivation, rendering hormone therapy ineffective .
[13]

Once the cancer becomes resistant to hormone therapy, other options are limited, and the prognosis
worsens . Similarly, chemotherapy temporarily shrinks tumors but does not address the root cause of the
[14]
disease, such as genetic mutations driving cancer progression and its associated systemic toxicity. These
limitations underscore the need for more targeted and personalized approaches to prostate cancer
treatment. This is where gene and cell therapies offer potential benefits to overcome the challenges of drug
resistance and minimize damage to healthy tissues.

GENE THERAPY
Gene therapy involves the modification of the genetic material within cancer cells to inhibit tumor growth,
induce apoptosis, or enhance immune recognition.

Targeted gene delivery systems
Gene therapy in prostate cancer treatment revolves around delivering therapeutic genes directly to cancer
cells, altering their behavior to inhibit tumor growth or enhance the immune system's ability to combat the
cancer. The two primary methods of gene delivery are viral and non-viral vectors. Viral vectors, such as
adenoviruses, lentiviruses, and retroviruses, have been widely studied due to their high efficiency in
transferring genetic material. These viruses are modified to carry therapeutic genes without causing
disease . Adenovirus vectors are frequently used to deliver genes that trigger apoptosis or suppress the
[15]
activity of oncogenes in prostate cancer cells . Non-viral vectors are composed of plasmid DNA and rely
[16]
on synthetic materials like liposomes and nanoparticles to encapsulate and deliver the genetic material to