Polymer-drug conjugates: Targeted drug delivery

Polymer therapeutics is a promising area in medicine and has led to the recent development of enhanced, targeted drug delivery systems. The fast-growing field of polymeric drug conjugates, almost a dozen of which are close to the clinical trial stage, have demonstrated several advantages over the parent drugs. These include ease of drug administration with fewer side effects, improved patient compliance, enhanced therapeutic efficacy, concentration and absorption, improved pharmacokinetics and stability. This chapter considers the potential of polymer- drug conjugates, which are going beyond classical methodologies, and their utility for treating major human diseases and new targets.