Increasing Chemotherapeutic Efficacy Using pH-Modulating and Doxorubicin-Releasing Injectable Chitosan-Poly(ethylene glycol) Hydrogels.

Modulation of pH is crucial to maintaining the chemical homeostasis of biological environments. The irregular metabolic pathways exhibited by cancer cells result in the production of acidic byproducts that are excreted and accumulate in the extracellular tumor microenvironment, reducing the pH. As a consequence of the lower pH in tumors, cancer cells increase the expression of metastatic phenotypes and chemotherapeutic resistance.