Abstract

Cancer is the second leading cause of mortality globally and is characterized by a multifactorial etiology. Drug resistance and multidrug resistance are the reasons for the failure of many anticancer drugs that are in clinical practice now. The current review is a complete review of benzimidazole hybrids with different heterocyclic rings, which are potential anticancer agents. We reviewed around 70 research works of benzimidazole hybrids published in high-impact journals, along with a short discussion of structural features responsible for its activity against various cancers. This review highlighted benzimidazole hybrids as targeted anticancer agents with effects on multiple targets. Researchers working on targeted medications for cancer treatment will benefit from this review when designing new scaffolds with benzimidazole moieties.

Keywords: Cancer, benzimidazole, hybrids, multifunctional, pyrimidine, chalcone, coumarin.

Graphical Abstract