ABSTRACT
The detection of cancer, in its early stages, is considered to be one of the most vital considerations in treating patients successfully. Unfortunately, however, the current diagnostic methods are not capable of making such early diagnosis. In such a scenario, nanotechnology appears to be a promising tool to overcome these challenges. Nanotechnology-based products have demonstrated unique physical, optical and electrical properties which can facilitate early diagnosis. These nanotech-enabled diagnostic agents have proved to be generally more promising and reliable; due to their small size, they selectively gain access to the tumor site. The book chapter revolves around cancer, conventional imaging techniques, the use of quantum dots, gold nanoparticles (NPs), magnetic NPs, carbon nanotubes and many other materials which have been developed over the years, alongside the discovery of a wide range of biomarkers to detect cancer in very early stages. There are wide expectations that the coming years would witness the realization of dream of early detection of cancer using such nanoconstructs.
