Algae-derived bioactive compounds as potential pharmaceuticals for cancer therapy: A comprehensive review

Cancer is considered a pandemic, costing precious lives throughout the globe. Besides its deadly outcomes, the survival rate after cancer therapies is meager. Anti-cancer drug resistance and cytotoxicity are leading causes of the poor prognosis of anticancer treatments. Though advancements in genetic engineering, nanotechnology, and bioinformatics revolutionized anticancer drug discovery and development, the importance of natural compounds for anticancer drug development is indispensable. Algae are reservoirs for distinctive chemical entities and offer a promising line for cancer research. Chemotherapy has been beneficial up to now, but it also comes with quite undesirable side effects. Algae and algae-derived products are an area that is revolutionizing itself as these are less poisonous, quicker, cheaper, safer, and more eco-friendly than traditional treatment approaches. Complementary and alternative drug compounds extracted from marine or freshwater flora, particularly prokaryotic and eukaryotic algae, have been studied for their pharmaceutical potential. However, the application of algaederived natural compounds as pharmaceuticals and for anticancer drug development is still in its infancy. Algae, as an autotrophic organism, is considered the most untapped and the richest source of pharmaceutical compounds. Through this comprehensive review, efforts have been made to draw attention to the most recent advancements and significant achievements in algae-based cancer therapeutics that target nuclear and cellular components. Additionally, challenges and solutions of algae-derived anticancer compounds have been discussed in detail.