Marine-Derived Anticancer Compounds and their Clinical Status

Introduction: Marine ecosystems provide an abundant reservoir of structurally diverse natural compounds that exhibit distinctive pharmacological activities. In recent decades, many bioactive molecules isolated from marine sources have been recognized as promising anticancer candidates. These agents act through multiple mechanisms, such as suppressing tumor cell proliferation, triggering programmed cell death, and influencing the tumor microenvironment. This review aims to provide a highlight of recent advances (2020–2025) in the discovery, preclinical evaluation, and clinical development of marine-derived compounds for cancer therapy, with emphasis on their structural diversity, biological activity, and clinical trial status. Methods: Relevant literature was systematically searched in PubMed, ScienceDirect, Google Scholar, Scopus, SpringerLink, and https://clinicaltrials.gov/. using keywords “marine natural products,” “anticancer activity,” “clinical trials,” and “FDA-approved marine drugs.” Only studies published between 2020 and 2025 were included, and data on cell line activity were extracted. Results: Several promising marine-derived compounds, including alkaloids, peptides, polyketides, and depsipeptides, have shown potent anticancer activity in in-vivo cell line models such as renieramycin M, salinosporamide A, bryostatins, halichondrin B, etc., while many of these compounds have achieved FDA approval, such as trabectedin, eribulin, plitidepsin, and lurbinectedin. While many other marine compounds are currently in clinical trials, they are expected to demonstrate therapeutic effects. Discussion: Marine-derived compounds show significant anticancer potential due to their novel chemical structure and diverse mechanisms of action. Recent research studies have highlighted the efficacy of targeting tumor growth and minimizing the risk of resistance. Future research needs to conduct more clinical trials to support the results and to enable large-scale production of marine-derived compounds. Conclusion: Marine sources offer a wide variety of compounds, and modifying them provides researchers with new opportunities for drug development. Many marine-derived compounds have already shown strong pharmacological effects, with some even proven in clinical use. New studies suggest that marine compounds could also play an important role in anticancer drug delivery systems, making them a promising option for future treatments.