Call for papers: CPA special issue on polypharmacology in cancer therapy—overcoming resistance and enhancing efficacy

Cancer remains a leading cause of global mortality, with therapeutic challenges primarily arising from drug resistance and limited treatment efficacy. Polypharmacology—the strategic use of multi-target drugs or synergistic drug combinations—has emerged as a transformative approach to address these limitations. The journal Current Pharmaceutical Analysis is pleased to announce a special issue focusing on cutting-edge advancements in polypharmacology for cancer therapy, with an emphasis on mechanisms of drug resistance, rational design of drug combinations, and computational and AI-driven methodologies for discovering novel polypharmacological agents.

Topics Covered

We invite submissions of Full-Length Articles, Reviews, Editorials, Correspondence, and Short Communications on the following themes:

1. Multi-Target Drug Design

   • Discovery of compounds targeting multiple cancer-related pathways.

   • Structure-activity relationship (SAR) studies for polypharmacological agents.

2. Overcoming Drug Resistance

   • Inhibition of compensatory signaling pathways in resistant tumors.

   • Epigenetic and metabolic adaptations in resistance, and polypharmacological interventions.

3. Synergistic Drug Combinations

   • High-throughput screening for optimal drug synergies.

   • Nanotechnology-based delivery systems for combination therapies.

4. Computational and AI Approaches

   • Network pharmacology and machine learning models for drug interaction prediction.

   • Virtual screening of multi-target inhibitors.

Important Dates

• Submission Deadline: July 10, 2026

Submission Instructions

Manuscript types accepted include Full Length Articles, Reviews, Editorials, Correspondence, and Short Communications.

An Article Processing Charge (APC) of $1680 will apply, with a 20% discount for this special issue.

You can contact us via email: editorial@fargroups.com

Guest Editors

• Gary A. Piazza, Ph.D.
  Affiliation: Auburn University, Department of Drug Discovery and Development, Harrison College of Pharmacy; Auburn, AL 36849, USA.
  Research Interests: Signal transduction, cancer biology, phosphodiesterase, cyclic guanosine monophosphate, β-catenin, RAS

• Zhe-Sheng (Jason) Chen
  Affiliation: College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, St. John’s University, New York, 11439, USA
  Research Interests: Drug resistance and its reversal in cancer

• Adam B. Keeton
  Affiliation: Auburn University Harrison College of Pharmacy; Auburn, AL 36849, USA.
  Research Interests: Oncology, Targeted Drug Discovery, Assay Development.

• Angela I. Calderón
  Affiliation: Department of Drug Discovery and Development, Harrison College of Pharmacy, Auburn University
  Research Interests: Botanical drug interactions, Integration of bioactivity to mass spectrometry of natural products using Computational and statistical tools, MS-based bioassays, and natural products chemistry.

Keywords

Polypharmacology, Cancer therapy, Drug resistance, Combination therapy, Multi-target drugs, Precision oncology

For more information, please contact the editorial office via email: editorial@fargroups.com