Sensing-Assisted Communication for mmWave Networks: A Review of Techniques, Applications, and Future Directions

The emergence of 6G wireless systems marks a paradigm shift toward intelligent, context-aware networks that can adapt in real-time to their environment. Within this landscape, Sensing-Assisted Communication (SAC) emerges as a key enabler, integrating perception into the communication control loop to enhance reliability, beamforming accuracy, and system responsiveness. Unlike prior surveys that treat SAC as a subfunction of Integrated Sensing and Communication (ISAC), this work offers the first dedicated review of SAC in Millimeter-Wave (mmWave) and Sub-Terahertz (Sub-THz) systems, where directional links and channel variability present core challenges. SAC encompasses a diverse set of methods that enable wireless systems to dynamically adapt to environmental changes and channel conditions in real time. Recent studies demonstrate up to 80% reduction in beam training overhead and significant gains in latency and mobility resilience. Applications include predictive beamforming, blockage mitigation, and low-latency Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) and vehicular communication. This review unifies the SAC landscape and outlines future directions in standardization, Artificial Intelligence (AI) integration, and cooperative sensing for next-generation wireless networks.