This document discusses how nanotechnology can be used for cancer diagnosis and treatment. It provides an overview of cancer, common diagnosis and treatment methods, and drawbacks. Then it introduces nanotechnology and how nanoparticles, nanotubes, and nanorobots can help detect cancer earlier and more precisely compared to traditional methods. Nanoparticles can also be used for targeted drug delivery to cancer cells to improve treatment effectiveness while reducing side effects.

1. Nanotechnology
in Cancer
By Maryam Waseem

2. o Introduction to Cancer
o Causes of Cancer
o Common methods for Diagnosis of
Cancer
o Common Therapies for Cancer
Treatment
o Drawbacks of using Common
Technology
o Nanotechnology
o Nanotechnology in Cancer Diagnosis
o Nanotechnology in Cancer Treatment

3. Cancer
" Cancer is a group of diseases
also known as malignant
neoplasm involves abnormal
growth of cells that has potential
to invade other cells and spread
throughout the body."
• The abnormal growth of cells
are either benign or malignant.
• Bening tumor do not spread
throughout the
body whereas malignant
tumors also known as cancer
invades other cells and spreads
in the body.

4. Causes
of
Cancer
There are many type of cancer. Each
cancer´s type is unique and has its
own causes. Some of common causes
of cancer are following:
• Radiation
• Diet
• Daily Routine
• Chemicals
• Heredity
• Physical agents
• Hormones

5. Diagnosis of
Cancer
Physical Examination:
• In physical examination doctor will see physical changes of your body like
skin color change, organ enlargement and may feel the areas to see any
lumps.
Laboratory Tests:
• The tests like blood test or urine test may help the doctors to identify
abnormalities like cancer. E.g. patient with leukemia will have abnormal
white blood cells that can detected in complete blood count(CBC) test.
Imaging Tests:
• Imaging tests will allow doctor to examine your body internally; organs and
bones etc.
• These test involves MRI, CT scan, PET scan, X-ray and ultrasound.
Biopsy:
• In biopsy, doctors will collect cells from the body and look them under
microscope to diagnose cancer.
• Biopsy procedure depends upon the type and position of cancer.

7. Treatment of Cancer
Treatment of cancer involves following
procedures:
Radiation Therapy:
In radiation therapy high energy particle or
waves are used to destroy cancer cells or
damage them to the point where they cause no
damage.
Hyperthermia:
The heat is being used to treat cancer. Newer
tools allow us to deliver heat precisely to the
targeted areas with cancer.
Chemotherapy:
Chemotherapy is a use of drugs for the
treatment of cancer.

8. Drawbacks of
Common
Technology
There are some major drawbacks of using
common technology in cancer diagnosis and
treatment. Some are following:
• Late Diagnosis: Common technology is not
so good in early stages of cancer diagnosis.
Doctor knows its cancer after potential
damage of cells.
• Non-Specific Chemo: the chemotherapy
may damage normal cells along with the
cancerous cells making patient´s body
weaker day by day.
• Non-Specific Radiation Therapy: the
radiation therapy will also kill normal cells
along with cancerous cells.

9. Nanotechnology
"Nanotechnology is an emerging field in which we create useful
devices, materials and systems through their manipulation on nano-
scale."
This field involves many other disciplines like chemistry, physics,
engineering and information technology.
Nano refers to one billionth or 10-9 .
Many interesting nano devices are being developed like for diagnosis
and treatment purposes of different diseases involving diseases like
cancer.

10. Nanotechnology
in Cancer
Diagnosis
Nanotechnology can be used to detect
cancerous cells more precisely and
advancely.
Optical Nanoparticles
• The most emerging technique is
being used is optical nanoparticles
for detecting cancer.
• The optical nanoparticle enters the
body and get attaches to the tumor
cells.
• This technique involves special kind
of dyes which interact with tumor
cells and optical nanoparticles will
be detected.

12. Nanopores
• Nanopores are tiny holes which
allows only one strand of DNA at
one time.
• We can monitor different
properties of bases like shape,
electrical properties as the DNA
passes through the nanopore.
• This will help us to get each
and every information encoded in
DNA which will also tell us
about errors and mutations
present in DNA that give rise to
cancer.

13. Nanotubes
• Nanotubes are nanodevices
that help us identify DNA
mutations related to cancer.
• Nanotubes are carbon
rods that are half the
diameter of DNA molecule will
not only detect mutations but
will also tell us the exact
location of altered gene.

14. Nanotechnology
in Cancer
Treatment
Nanoparticles for drug delivery system:
• The nanoparticles used in drug delivery
system are ceramic nanoparticles, silica
coated micelles and cross linked
liposomes are attached to form
branched and spherical molecules that
can precisely target cancer cells.
• The targeting of cancer cells is done by
attaching monoclonal antibodies or
surface receptor ligands that helps it to
attach to cancer cell surface.
• Then the nanoparticles are rapidly taken
into the cells.

16. Liposomes

17. Nanoshells
• The miniscule beads which are coated
with gold are called as nanoshells.
• We manipulate the thickness of the
layers to control the absorbance of
different wavelenghts of lights by these
beads.
• In cancer treatment the most useful
nanoshells are those that absorbs
infrared wavelenght.
• When nanoshells absorb infrared, they
become heated and created a intensive
heat environment for cancerous cells
they are attach to causing them to die.
• The gold nanoshells are introduced into
tumor by phagocytosis.

19. Nanorobots
• Bacteriorobots are successfully
developed by Korean research team
which are beneficial in cancer
diagnosis as well as in treatment.
• Bacteriorobots are made up of nano
sized genetically modified, non-
pathogenic bacteria and
microstructure
sized 3 micrometer that are filled
with anticancer drugs.
• They move inside body through
flagella and find tumors by pushing
microstructures.
• As soon as they target the tumor then
they release the drugs that ultimately
kills the cancerous cells.

21. Conclusion
• Cancer is a deadly disease that needs to be
diagnose and cured at early stages.
• Common technology is good but not enough
precise to diagnose and treat cancer.
• Nanotechnology is becoming popular in treating
many diseases especially cancer.
• The nanotechnology techniques for
diagnosis involves optical nanoparticles,
nanopores and nanotubes which can
diagnose cancer type and its origin precisely.
• The treatment of cancer through
nanotechnology involves nanoshells, liposomes
and nanorobots which is targeted and do
not kill healthy or normal cells of the body.
• Nanotechnology has proved to be a very useful
assert in diagnosing and treating cancer precisely
and effectively.