NANOTECHNOLOGY: A CURE TO CANCER?

I was so electrified when i found out that there will be a cure to cancer. A technology that was built and discovered by our most valuable and brightest scientist in the whole world. The name of the technology is NANOTECHNOLOGY.

Nanotechnology, shortened to "nanotech", is the study of the controlling of matter on an atomic and molecular scale. Generally nanotechnology deals with structures sized between 1 to 100 nanometer in at least one dimension, and involves developing materials or devices within that size.

Nanotechnology is very diverse, ranging from extensions of conventional device physics to completely new approaches based upon molecular self-assembly, from developing new materials with dimensions on the nanoscale to investigating whether we can directly control matter on the atomic scale.

Nanotechnology has the power to radically change the way cancer is diagnosed, imaged and

treated. Currently, there is a lot of research going on to design novel nanodevices capable of detecting

cancer at its earliest stages, pinpointing it’s location within the body and delivering anticancer drugs

specifically to malignant cells.

Nanoscale devices smaller than 50 nanometers can easily enter most cells, while those smaller

than 20 nanometers can transit out of blood vessels.1 As a result, nanoscale devices can readily interact

with biomolecules on both the cell surface and within the cell. Nanoscale devices are already proving

that they can deliver therapeutic agents to target cells, or even within specific organelles.1 Yet, despite

its small size, a nanoscale device is capable of holding tens of thousands of small molecules, such as a

contrast agent or drug.

The major areas in which nanomedicine is being developed in cancer include:

• Prevention and control. Developing nanoscale devices to deliver cancer prevention agents and

designing multicomponent anticancer vaccines.

• Early detection and proteomics. Developing “smart” collection platforms for simultaneous mass

analysis of cancer-associated markers.

• Imaging diagnostics. Designing targeted contrast agents that improve the resolution of cancer to a

single cell.

• Multifunctional Therapeutics. Creating therapeutic devices that can control the release of cancerfighting

drugs and optimally deliver medications.

This technology can lead us to more advance discoveries to our near future. Still our most formidable scientist are experimenting to discover other uses of this technology. Lets wish that our world brains can discover more useful uses of this technology.