Table 3 Common directions of clinical applications of nanorobots in future cancer diagnosis and therapeutic treatments
From: Advances of medical nanorobots for future cancer treatments
Entry | Application | Explanation | Advantages | Limitations |
|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Targeted imaging | Nanorobots can be engineered to selectively target at cancer cells/tumor tissues, allowing for improved imaging and visualization of the tumor | Enhanced imaging and visualization of a tumor, providing more accurate diagnosis Increased specificity in targeting at cancer cells, reducing harm to healthy cells Potential to visualize smaller tumors or lesions that may be missed by traditional imaging techniques Improved ability to monitor treatment response and track changes of a tumor over time | Technological difficulties in engineering nanorobots to effectively and selectively target at cancer cells or tumor tissues The cost and intricacy of producing and deploying substantial numbers of nanorobots |
2 | Tumor biopsy | Nanorobots can be designed to perform minimally invasive biopsy procedures, allowing for the collection of tissue samples for diagnosis | Minimally invasive biopsy procedures, reducing the risk of complications and patient discomfort Improved accuracy in collecting tissue samples, providing a more precise diagnosis Potential to reach and collect bio-sample previously inaccessible tumors | The challenges faced in creating nanorobots that can successfully carry out biopsy procedures due to technical limitations The expenses and complexities involved in manufacturing and utilizing large quantities of nanorobots |
3 | Molecular diagnosis | Nanorobots can be engineered to perform molecular diagnostics, allowing for the early detection of specific cancer biomarkers and improved diagnosis | Improved accuracy in detecting specific cancer biomarkers, providing a more precise diagnosis Increased efficiency in performing molecular diagnostics, reducing the time and cost of diagnosis Potential to detect cancer at an earlier stage, improving patients’ prognosis outcomes | Challenges posed by technology in designing nanorobots for molecular diagnostic purposes Financial and technical hurdles involved in manufacturing and distributing significant amounts of nanorobots |
4 | Targeted administration | Nanorobots can be engineered to selectively target at cancer cells or tumor tissues, thereby enhancing the efficacy of immunotherapy and minimizing adverse effects | Improved efficiency in directing immunotherapy agents directly to the tumor site Lessened adverse effects as compared to systemic drug administration methods Administering higher doses of immunotherapy agents to the tumor site, thereby improving treatment efficacy Enhanced specificity in targeting at cancer cells/tumor tissues, thus reducing harm to healthy normal cells | The intricacies involved in engineering nanorobots with the capability to effectively and precisely target at cancer cells/ tumor tissues The expenses and complexity associated with the mass production and deployment of these nanorobots |
5 | Continual monitoring | Nanorobots can be designed to continuously monitor the local changes of a tumor and release immunotherapy agents as required, thus providing a more adaptive and dynamic therapeutic treatments | Providing a more adaptable and dynamic therapeutic treatment method, responding to changes in the tumor microenvironment Capacity to continuously monitor the tumor and release immunotherapy agents as necessary, thus enhancing treatment efficacy | Technological difficulties in designing nanorobots with the capability to continuously monitor a tumor, and release immunotherapy agents The cost and intricacy of producing and deploying substantial quantity of nanorobots |
6 | Conjoint therapy | Nanorobots can be engineered to administer multiple immunotherapy agents simultaneously, thereby allowing for a more comprehensive and effective cancer treatments | Potential to simultaneously deliver multiple immunotherapy agents, thereby enhancing treatment efficacy Ability to exert targeted delivery of immunotherapy agents, reducing harm to healthy normal cells Improving patient outcomes through the integration of multiple treatments into a single nanorobotic platform | The technical challenges in designing nanorobots capable of delivering multiple immunotherapy agents with high efficacy The financial implications and intricacies involved in the large-scale production and deployment of nanorobots |
7 | Tumor ablation | Nanorobots can be designed to physically destroy cancer cells through various means such as heat, light or mechanical ablation | Potential to directly and physically destroy cancer cells, reducing the risk of tumor recurrence Ability to destroy cancer cells in areas that are difficult to access using traditional surgical tools or methods Potential for minimally invasive treatment with reduced risk of complications as compared to traditional surgery | Technical challenges in designing nanorobots to accurately destroy cancer cells Cost and complexity of manufacturing and deploying large quantity of nanorobots |