Reactive oxygen species overload: a review of plasma therapy and photobiomodulation for cancer treatment

Abstract

Cancers of major organs and their treatment with chemotherapeutic agents can be difficult and challenging, both because of the disease itself, and also because of the accompanying side effects of the treatment. Recent studies in cancer biology have revealed that cancer cells have higher levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS). ROS play a dual role in physiological and pathological conditions of the human body. It is well known that ROS are engaged in many cellular activities for the preservation of cellular homeostasis. While both normal and cancer cells maintain specific levels of ROS, excess ROS leads to increased oxidative stress linked to cellular damage and potentially cell death. Emergent technologies like plasma therapy and photobiomodulation (PBM), have demonstrated their capabilities of increasing intracellular ROS levels, thus, gaining recognition as prospective cancer treatments. This review aims to summarize the effects of plasma and PBM on the ROS levels of cells as observed in previous studies and evaluate their potential to be developed as treatments for cancer.

Recent Findings on Therapeutic Cancer Vaccines: An Updated Review

“…Cold atmospheric plasma (CAP), also known as nonthermal or cold physical plasma, is a medium consisting of partially ionized gas(es) that provokes the generation of various reactive oxygen and nitrogen species. CAP has been applied in a wide range of industries, including medicine and in particular, in cancer therapy; CAP has shown promising results in destroying cancer cells as well as solid tumors by affecting various related mechanisms at the same time, such as inducing apoptosis, specifically in tumor cells but not in their normal counterparts, reducing cell migration, arresting the cell cycle at the S-phase, damaging the DNA, along with increasing the intracellular concentrations of ROS in the TME, reducing tumor immunosuppression, and improving antigenicity [447][448][449][450][451][452][453]. CAP has gained FDA approval to be used in cancer therapy [454][455][456].…”