A REVIEW ON ADVANCEMENT ON MIP (MOLECULAR IMPRINTED POLYMER) BASED SENSOR FOR DIAGNOSIS OF LUNG CANCER DETECTION

Jyoti Burnwal*, Dr. Vikas Kumar Singh, Happy Kumar, Dipanshu Kumar, Saurabh Kumar Ganguly, Vikash Singh Yadav, Amit Kumar

Cancer remains a severe disease characterized by abnormal cell proliferation that spreads throughout the body, making early diagnosis and targeted treatment absolutely critical for improving patient survival rates. Traditional diagnostic techniques, such as invasive tissue biopsies, alongside conventional targeting agents like natural antibodies and aptamers, often suffer from being laborious, expensive, and prone to physical degradation. To address these inherent limitations, molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) have emerged as highly stable, cost-effective "synthetic receptors" capable of recognizing targeted molecules with exceptional affinity and selectivity. This review meticulously details diverse synthesis strategies—including bulk, surface, and epitope imprinting—which provide the structural rationale behind these artificial antibodies and allow them to overcome mass transfer issues associated with complex biological macromolecules. Furthermore, it provides a comprehensive overview of the recent progress in utilizing MIPs for in vitro and in vivo cancer theragnostics. MIP-based biosensors demonstrate exceptional adaptability, successfully targeting and capturing a wide array of circulating cancer biomarkers, ranging from nucleic acids and proteins to uniquely shaped exosomes and whole cancer cells. Beyond diagnostics, MIPs facilitate the transition to advanced theragnostics by enabling highly localized, stimuli-responsive drug delivery. These smart nanocarriers release chemotherapeutics triggered by internal or external stimuli (such as pH, temperature, or magnetic fields) and integrate seamlessly with light-mediated treatments like photothermal and photodynamic therapies, thereby enhancing localized efficacy while minimizing off-target toxicity. They are also being explored for biological activity regulation, successfully acting as artificial enzyme inhibitors and aiding in immune checkpoint blockade therapies to reactivate T-cell immunity. Despite their immense promise, the clinical deployment of MIPs faces several hurdles, including the complex heterogeneity of tumor subtypes, a lack of standardized synthesis and evaluation protocols, and the critical need for deeper investigations into long-term in vivo toxicity, biological dispersion, and biodegradability. Taken together, the extensive topics discussed in this review aim to provide concise guidelines for overcoming these current bottlenecks, ultimately paving the way for the development of novel MIP-based systems that can diagnose cancer more precisely and promote highly successful, personalized treatments.