Cancer therapeutics based on diverse energy sources

Abstract

Light has been utilized for cancer treatment owing to its advantages. Low penetration depth of light restricts its application in cancer treatment. To overcome the drawback, various treatments based on each energy sources have been developed.

Enhanced Photodynamic Therapy: A Review of Combined Energy Sources

“…Microwaves have been widely explored for tumor ablation in clinical settings due to their depth of penetration into tissues, high heating efficiency, and negligible side effects [ 31 , 32 ]. Microwave ablation uses electromagnetic waves in the microwave energy spectrum to produce tissue heating effects that ultimately generate tissue necrosis within solid tumors.…”

“…X-ray has been widely applied in clinical tumor imaging and therapy because X-ray photons have an unlimited penetration depth in the human body compared to visible or near-infrared light [ 2 , 11 , 32 ]. Recently, PDT and X-ray have been merged to establish a new mode of PDT to treat deep tumors, X-ray-induced PDT (X-PDT) [ 26 , 62 ].…”

“…Cherenkov radiation has also been proposed to generate light and activate PDT in deep tissues using ionizing radiation [ 26 , 29 , 41 , 64 ]. Cherenkov emission is observed when charged particles, e.g., electrons or positrons, travel faster than the phase velocity of light in a given medium [ 29 , 32 , 41 , 77 ]. Research shows that Cherenkov radiation from medical radioisotopes can activate PSs to produce ROS [ 32 , 64 ].…”

“…Cherenkov emission is observed when charged particles, e.g., electrons or positrons, travel faster than the phase velocity of light in a given medium [ 29 , 32 , 41 , 77 ]. Research shows that Cherenkov radiation from medical radioisotopes can activate PSs to produce ROS [ 32 , 64 ]. Cherenkov-PDT has been reported using both radionuclides [ 78 , 79 , 80 ] and radiotherapy beams [ 81 , 82 ].…”

“…Ultrasound refers to sound frequencies that are above the range of human hearing (>20 kHz) [ 2 , 32 , 83 ]. Unlike visible light, ultrasound is a type of mechanical wave that can penetrate deeply into a tumor target [ 84 ].…”