Magnetic hydrogel (MagGel): An evolutionary pedestal for anticancer therapy

Recent advancement in biomaterials have led to the development of magnetic hydrogel as promising tool for anticancer therapy. Magnetic hydrogels improve injectability over bare nanoparticles by controlling particle dispersion and reducing aggregation, ensuring uniform delivery and minimizing clogging, thereby enhancing anticancer therapy effectiveness and safety. This review explores the fundamental crosslinking methodologies and chemical strategies for the formation of hydrogels, transitioning into detailed discussions on the synthesis of magnetic hydrogels, emphasizing their unique properties essential for biomedical applications. Key properties such as injectability, shear thinning, biocompatibility, porosity, mechanical properties, and biodegradability underpinning the efficacy of magnetic hydrogels in biomedical applications are discussed. Furthermore, the review highlights the diverse applications of magnetic hydrogels in the biomedical field, including hyperthermia, MRI-guided therapy, targeted drug delivery, and tissue engineering. These properties and applications demonstrate the potential of magnetic hydrogels to revolutionize cancer treatment and other medical therapies, offering a multifunctional platform that can address various biomedical challenges with enhanced precision and effectiveness. Finally, future research trends and applications of magnetic hydrogels are also recommended and examined.