This invention relates to a novel tri-component nanocomposite system comprising commercially available zinc oxide nanowires (ZnO NWs) functionalized to simultaneously deliver both small-molecule drugs and genetic material to cancer cells. This hybrid nanocarrier platform addresses critical limitations of current cancer therapies, including poor tumor selectivity, systemic toxicity, and inability to co-deliver multiple therapeutic modalities. Background: Cancer remains the second leading cause of death worldwide, with over 10 million deaths annually, driven in part by therapeutic resistance, poor tumor penetration, and systemic toxicity of conventional chemotherapies. Systemic drug administration often leads to insufficient tumor accumulation and off-target toxicity in organs such as the liver and kidneys, limiting efficacy and increasing adverse effects. Improving tumor specificity and enabling combinatorial delivery of small-molecule drugs and genetic therapies is therefore critical for advancing more effective cancer treatments. Nanocarrier-based platforms that implement nanowires, such as this invention, have emerged in modern cancer nanomedicine as they are able to penetrate tumor cells more efficiently and deliver multiple treatments at the same time, which can increase tumor elimination while reducing side effects compared with conventional drug delivery methods. Applications:
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