The dark skin pigment melanin protects against the sun’s damaging rays by absorbing light energy and converting it to heat. This could make it a very effective tool in tumor diagnosis and treatment, as demonstrated by a team from the Technical University of Munich (TUM) and Helmholtz Zentrum München. The scientists created melanin-loaded cell membrane-derived nanoparticles, which improved tumor imaging in an animal model while also slowing the growth of the tumor.