Exploring the Future of Metal-Based Anticancer Agents: A Comprehensive Review of Ruthenium-Based Complexes

Ruthenium complexes are gaining recognition in oncology as promising alternatives to the traditionally used platinum-based anticancer agents. Unlike Pt agents, they can better differentiate between healthy and malignant cells, minimizing adverse side effects. They exhibit advantageous properties such as thermodynamic and kinetic stability, increased water solubility, enhanced cellular absorption, superior selectivity and cytotoxicity for tumors, and decreased toxicity to healthy cells. Ruthenium has been used to make complexes having structural variability and the ability to undergo ligand exchange. Ruthenium complexes are effective against metastatic tumor cells and can interact with cellular components; their significant charges and large cavities allow efficient molecule encapsulation. These complexes are being explored to enhance their efficacy in enzymatic research and targeted therapies. The manifold biochemical properties of ruthenium complexes and their ability to induce tumor cell apoptosis through various signaling pathways make them promising candidates for future anticancer agents. Despite successful testing of some of these complexes in clinical trials, none have been commercially available. Continued research aims to unlock the full potential of ruthenium complexes in cancer treatment. This review covers a few research findings of the past 6 years on the potential of ruthenium complexes ligated with organic moieties as antineoplastic agents.