Recent developments in peptide-based cancer therapeutics

Peptides make up only a fraction of therapeutically beneficial pharmaceutical molecules that are either in clinical testing or in the market. Despite the initially low number and impact of peptides on therapeutics, their potential has just intensified with new developments in modifications, stability, delivery and preclinical success. With the completion of the human genome sequence and developments in the proteomics field, peptides are emerging as important molecules for cancer therapy. Several peptides with exciting preclinical results have now entered into clinical trial for the treatment of human cancers. In this review, some of the recent advances in peptide-based cancer therapeutics will be discussed.