Imagine a world where dangerous conditions in unborn babies can be treated with diamonds smaller than a virus, where gold can find and destroy cancer cells with laser-like precision, and where platinum can change the genetic code of tumours. This isn’t science fiction – it’s happening in modern medicine.
For example, scientists are developing a way to treat a rare but often fatal condition in babies called congenital diaphragmatic hernia using nanodiamonds. At just five nanometres wide – about 10,000 times narrower than a human hair – the diamonds can slip through cell walls to deliver hormones to help babies’ lungs grow while they are still in the womb – giving them a better chance at survival.
So far, the treatment has only been tested on lab-grown mini-lungs.
