The nanotechnology has been widely applied in the diagnosis and treatment of several diseases. Nanotechnology applications in cancer based on drug delivery systems have been extensively evaluated over last decade and demonstrated to be a promising approach to improve the efficacy of anti-cancer therapy. However, the cellular heterogeneity and plasticity presented in tumors sites represent one of the main causes of metastasis and can be considered as one of the most challenge subjects for the improvement of cancer therapeutics. In this context, one of the cancer types with greatest metastatic potential and chemotherapeutic resistance is the melanoma. Precisely, two types of cancer cells are directly involved in tumor heterogeneity and melanoma metastasis: the cancer stem cells (CSCs) and circulating tumor cells (CTCs). High levels of CSCs and CTCs has been associated with tumor progression, chemoresistence and metastatic spread.
Owing to the clinical relevance of this skin cancer, the melanoma treatment has been widely explored for nanotechnology applications, including the use of polymeric nanoparticles. This book was dedicated to present and discuss the status of melanoma biomarkers and to evaluate the advances in polymeric nanoparticles strategies in order to develop effective drug delivery systems for the treatment of metastatic melanoma.