Tiny Conveyance: Micro- and Nanorobots Prepare to Advance Medicine.

In the science-fiction classic Fantastic Voyage [1], a shrink-ray zaps a submarine and the crew within it, and the resulting microscopic vehicle ventures inside a human body to destroy a blood clot and save a prominent patient's life. While that scenario remains in the realm of make-believe, it may not be long before micro- and nanoscale robots can navigate a person's blood vessels and execute a medical task, such as the targeted delivery of drugs or even the performance of some medical procedures.