Navigating the future of cancer management through carbon nanodots: A review

Cancer presents a formidable challenge, necessitating innovative therapies that maximize effectiveness while minimizing the side effects to healthy normal cells and tissues. Recent development in management of oncology through nano-enable technology through nano-structured objects have significantly impacted its prevalence. Among several nanotechnology recently carbon nanodots (CNDs) have emerged as promising theranostics nanomaterials in management of cancer. The theranostics potential of CNDs lies in their unique properties that make them promising candidates for both diagnostic and therapeutic applications in the field of nanomedicine. CNDs, a type of carbon-based surface-passivated nanostructure, offer several advantageous over traditional materials like semiconductor quantum dots and organic dyes. These advantages include tuneable optical properties, high photostability, ease of surface functionalization, low toxicity, and the ability to be synthesized from organic sources using top-down and bottom-up approaches. Moreover, CNDs have shown promise in various biomedical applications such as imaging, sensing, drug delivery, photodynamic therapy, and photocatalysis. Furthermore, CNDs have demonstrated synergistic effects when combined with other existing cancer treatment modalities, such as chemotherapy and radiotherapy, enhancing the overall therapeutic efficacy. The present review on CNDs emphasizes the importance of understanding their properties and theranostics application in management of cancer with their diverse application in the biomedical field, compared with other available nanoparticulate drug carrier system.