For the treatment of
malignancy, many therapeutic agents, including small molecules,
photosensitizers,
immunomodulators,
proteins and genes, and so forth, have been loaded into nanocarriers for controllable
cancer therapy. Among these nanocarriers, polymeric
micelles have been considered as one of the most promising nanocarriers, some of which have already been applied in different stages of clinical trials. The successful advantages of polymeric
micelles from bench to bedside are due to their special core/shell structures, which can carry specific drugs in certain disease conditions. Particularly, poly(
ethylene glycol)-
polylactide (
PEG-PLA)
micelles have been considered as one of the most promising platforms for drug delivery. The PEG shell effectively prevents the adsorption of
proteins and phagocytes, thereby evidently extending the blood circulation period. Meanwhile, the hydrophobic PLA core can effectively encapsulate many therapeutic agents. This review summarizes recent advances in
PEG-PLA micelles for the treatment of
malignancy. In addition, future perspectives for the development of
PEG-PLA micelles as drug delivery systems are also presented.