Nanotechnology, or systems/device manufacture at the molecular level, is a multidisciplinary scientific field undergoing explosive development. The genesis of nanotechnology can be traced to the promise of revolutionary advances across medicine, communications, genomics and robotics. Without doubt, one of the greatest values of nanotechnology will be in the development of new and effective medical treatments (i.e., nanomedicine). This review focuses on the potential of nanomedicine, including the development of nanoparticles for diagnostic and screening purposes, DNA sequencing using nanopores, manufacture of drug delivery systems and single-virus detection.