Abstract Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDA) remains one of the most aggressive malignancies, where conventional chemotherapy is limited by poor drug penetration and systemic toxicity. Magnetically responsive nanoplatforms offer a promising materials-based strategy to improve drug localization and enable externally controlled release. In this work, we present a comprehensive physicochemical characterization of gemcitabine-functionalized magnetic nanoplatforms (Fe 3 O 4 @SiO 2 @HAGel–Gem) deve