Cadmium and indium complexes [Cd(L 1 )(O 2 CCH 3 ) 2 (H 2 O)] (1) [Cd(L 2 ) 2 (O 2 CCH 3 ) 2 (H 2 O)] (2), [L 1 In(H 2 O)Cl 3 ]·L 1 (3) and [L 1 In(MeOH)Cl 3 ]·L 1 (4) (where L 1 =2-(pyridin-2-yl)benzo[d]thiazole and L 2 =2-(pyridin-4-yl)benzo[d]thiazole) are synthesized and characterized. The cadmium complex 1 is hexa-coordinated in which L 1 act as N,N-chelate. The two acetate ligands of the complex bind to cadmium in monodentate and bidentate fashion. In the complex 2, the ligand L 2 binds to cadmium ion through the nitrogen atom of the pyridine ring. The indium complexes 3 and 4 are hexa-coordinated; each has one L 1 as chelating ligand and another L 1 as molecule of crystallization. Fluorescence study revealed that the ligand L 1 can detect indium(III) ions in the presence of cadmium(II) ions. In cell-based cytotoxicity assays, the ligands are biologically inactive, while the cadmium complexes 1 and 2 are cytotoxic in pancreatic cancer cell lines Mia Paca-2, BxPC-3 and Panc-1, with IC 50 values as low as 16.0μM.