Cancer research scientists have created a nanorobot that can successfully shrink tumours by cutting off their blood supply, Express says.

Arizona State University scientists worked in collaboration with researchers from the National Center for Nanoscience and Technology to create the robots.

Speaking about the breakthrough, Hao Yan, director of the ASU Biodesign Institute's Center for Molecular Design and Biomimetics and the Milton Glick Professor in the School of Molecular Sciences, said: “We have developed the first fully autonomous, DNA robotic system for a very precise drug design and targeted cancer therapy.

“Moreover, this technology is a strategy that can be used for many types of cancer, since all solid tumour-feeding blood vessels are essentially the same.”

The successful trial is the first of its kind in mammals, having been tested on breast, ovarian and lung cancer as well as melanoma in mice.

Nano medicine is a new branch of medicine which hopes to use nanotechnology to create new treatment options for difficult diseases, especially cancer.

The challenge so far has been designing, building and controlling nanorobot to actively seek and destroy cancerous tumours, while not harming healthy cells at the same time.