Anticancer‐Active Organoiridium(III) Complexes With Schiff Base and Oxime Ligands: A Concise Review

Society has a pressing need for the development of novel metal‐based therapeutic agents that can mitigate the adverse side effects associated with current anticancer medications. In recent years, significant progress has been made in developing anticancer agents based on iridium organometallic complexes, where the coordinated organic ligands largely govern the biological activity. Therefore, the appropriate design of ligands is highly crucial in the development of effective metallodrugs for cancer therapy. Surprisingly, only a limited number of reviews are available in the literature which specifically focused on the cancer therapeutic potentials of iridium complexes with a particular class of ligands. This review provides a comprehensive overview of the antitumor properties of iridium complexes with Schiff base and oxime ligands. It provides an in‐depth discussion on the cytotoxicity and mechanisms of action of iridium complexes, comparative analyses with their ruthenium, rhodium and osmium analogs in several cases.