Electrospun nanofibers for gastric cancer: local therapeutics, biomimetic models, and diagnostic interfaces

Electrospun nanofibers have emerged as a versatile local-regional platform for gastric cancer, particularly for postoperative recurrence control and peritoneal metastasis, where systemic therapies often fail to achieve sufficient and durable intraperitoneal exposure. Owing to their high surface area, interconnected porosity, and engineerable architecture, electrospun membranes enable programmable local pharmacokinetics and tunable cell-material interactions by regulating fiber diameter, pore connectivity, and alignment. Advanced designs, including coaxial, Janus, multilayer, gradient, and porous fibers, further expand the therapeutic window by separating drug compatibility from release behavior and supporting sequential or compartmentalized delivery. In perioperative settings, electrospun patches can function as locoregional depots to suppress microscopic residual disease while simultaneously facilitating infection control and tissue repair. For peritoneal metastasis, electrospun membranes can sustain intraperitoneal drug exposure and incorporate microenvironment-responsive sensitization strategies targeting hypoxia, redox adaptation, and ferroptosis resistance. Beyond therapy, electrospun scaffolds provide biomimetic gastric cancer models that better recapitulate diffusion barriers, metabolic gradients, and mechanobiological cues, improving the translational relevance of drug-response evaluation. Nanofiber-based interfaces also support longitudinal monitoring by enhancing the capture and analysis of circulating tumor cells and other low-abundance biomarkers. Finally, we highlight key translational considerations, including quality-by-design, critical quality attributes, sterilization robustness, and scalable manufacturing, to accelerate clinical adoption of electrospun products for gastric cancer management.