The sensors, which can detect chemotherapy drugs as well as toxins and free radicals, are carbon nanotubes that scientists have wrapped in DNA so they can be safely injected into living tissue, according to a release from the university.

In this week's announcement, Stanford noted that the new nanotechnology research is tens to hundreds of times more sensitive than traditional cancer scanning techniques.

"This work represents a giant leap... with significant potential for many applications including cancer detection and management," said Dr. Sam Gambhir, the principal investigator of the Center of Cancer Nanotechnology Excellence at Stanford, in a written statement.