Possibilities for microwave breast tumor sensing via contrast-agent-loaded nanorobots

Biocompatible nanorobots controlled by external electromagnetic (EM) stimuli and observers may play a significant role in future medical theranoustic applications. In this paper, we present possibilities for the use of such nanorobots for microwave breast cancer detection. In particular, we envision using differential microwave imaging (DMI) for tracking and monitoring nanorobots designed to target tumorous locations only accessible through the smallest capillaries in the human breast. The directions and speeds of swarms of these bacterial nanorobots can be controlled through an external magnetic field, and microwave contrast agents such as single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) can be loaded to alter the tissue dielectric properties. We illustrate how these two properties can be exploited for microwave breast tumor sensing via numerical simulations under certain assumptions, which are also discussed.