Phototheranostics stem from the recent advances in nanomedicines and bioimaging to diagnose and treat human diseases. Since tumors’ diversity, heterogeneity, and instability limit the clinical application of traditional diagnostics and therapeutics, phototheranostics, which combine light-induced therapeutic and diagnostic modalities in a single platform, have been widely investigated. Numerous efforts have been made to develop phototheranostics for efficient light-induced antitumor therapeutics with minimal side effects. Herein, we review the fundamentals of phototheranostic nanomedicines with their biomedical applications. Furthermore, the progress of near-infrared fluorescence imaging and cancer treatments, including photodynamic therapy and photothermal therapy, along with chemotherapy, immunotherapy, and gene therapy, are summarized. This review also discusses the opportunities and challenges associated with the clinical translation of phototheranostics in pan-cancer research. Phototheranostics can pave the way for future research, improve the quality of life, and prolong cancer patients’ survival times.

光疗诊断学源于纳米医学和生物成像技术在诊断和治疗人类疾病方面的最新进展。由于肿瘤的多样性、异质性和不稳定性限制了传统诊断和治疗的临床应用，因此将光诱导治疗和诊断模式结合在一个平台上的光疗诊断学得到了广泛研究。已经做出了许多努力来开发光疗诊断学，以实现有效的光诱导抗肿瘤治疗，并且副作用最小。在此，我们回顾了光疗纳米医学的基本原理及其生物医学应用。此外，总结了近红外荧光成像和癌症治疗的进展，包括光动力疗法和光热疗法，以及化学疗法、免疫疗法和基因疗法。本综述还讨论了光疗诊断学在泛癌研究中的临床转化所带来的机遇和挑战。光疗可以为未来的研究铺平道路，提高生活质量，延长癌症患者的生存时间。