Gold nanoparticles in prostate cancer theranostics advances and future challenges

Prostate cancer (PCa) faces challenges in early diagnosis and treatment toxicity. Gold nanoparticles (AuNPs), with unique properties (surface plasmon resonance, facile functionalization, biocompatibility), offer innovative theranostic strategies. For diagnosis, functionalized AuNPs integrated with electrochemical luminescence, surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy, and colorimetric sensing enable ultrasensitive detection of biomarkers like prostate-specific antigen (PSA) (detection limits down to fg/mL–ag/mL) advanced non-PSA biomarkers (e.g., PSA glycoforms, sarcosine, genomic 5hmC), and molecular profiling via exosome liquid biopsy. Therapeutically, AuNPs act as targeted drug carriers, enhancing local concentration while reducing systemic toxicity. Their photothermal conversion and radiosensitizing effects support precise, minimally invasive tumor ablation. The clinical feasibility of AuNP-mediated photothermal therapy has been validated in initial human trials. However, clinical translation is hindered by batch-to-batch consistency in scale-up, insufficient long-term biosafety data, and the cost/accessibility of integrated platforms. Future research must prioritize interdisciplinary collaboration, leveraging AI for design optimization, microfluidics for standardized production, utilizing three-dimensional spheroid models to optimize synergistic drug-radiotherapy, and developing low-cost portable devices to advance AuNPs from proof-of-concept to clinical deployment for personalized precision oncology.