Gold nanoshells in cancer imaging and therapy: Towards clinical application

Although hyperthermia has been a promising method of cancer treatment for decades, traditional means of heating tissues involve invasive catheters or whole-body heating systems. The use of nanoparticles in hyperthermia therapy has been developed over the last 4 years and involves the near-infrared heating of these nanoshells without harming healthy tissues. The paper under evaluation demonstrates the improved optical imaging of tumors with nanoshells and the improved long-term survival of mice treated with these particles and near-infrared irradiation. The implications of this work and important future steps are explored in this evaluation.