The therapeutic properties of light have been known for thousands of years, but it was only in the last century that photodynamic therapy (PDT) was developed. At present, PDT is being tested in the clinic for use in oncology--to treat cancers of the head and neck, brain, lung, pancreas, intraperitoneal cavity, breast, prostate and skin. How does PDT work, and how can it be used to treat cancer and other diseases?

Photodynamic therapy for cancer

CA : A Cancer Journal for Clinicians

NOTE The report of the Committee without its annexes appears as Official Records of the General Assembly, Sixty-third Session, Supplement No. 46. The designations employed and the presentation of material in this publication do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Secretariat of the United Nations concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area, or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. The country names used in this document are, in most cases, those that were in use at the time the data were collected or the text prepared. In other cases, however, the names have been updated, where this was possible and appropriate, to reflect political changes. Scientific Annexes Annex A. Medical radiation exposures Annex B. Exposures of the public and workers from various sources of radiation INTROdUCTION 1. In the course of the research and development for and the application of atomic energy and nuclear technologies, a number of radiation accidents have occurred. Some of these accidents have resulted in significant health effects and occasionally in fatal outcomes. The application of technologies that make use of radiation is increasingly widespread around the world. Millions of people have occupations related to the use of radiation, and hundreds of millions of individuals benefit from these uses. Facilities using intense radiation sources for energy production and for purposes such as radiotherapy, sterilization of products, preservation of foodstuffs and gamma radiography require special care in the design and operation of equipment to avoid radiation injury to workers or to the public. Experience has shown that such technology is generally used safely, but on occasion controls have been circumvented and serious radiation accidents have ensued. 2. Reviews of radiation exposures from accidents have been presented in previous UNSCEAR reports. The last report containing an exclusive chapter on exposures from accidents was the UNSCEAR 1993 Report [U6]. 3. This annex is aimed at providing a sound basis for conclusions regarding the number of significant radiation accidents that have occurred, the corresponding levels of radiation exposures and numbers of deaths and injuries, and the general trends for various practices. Its conclusions are to be seen in the context of the Committee's overall evaluations of the levels and effects of exposure to ionizing radiation. 4. The Committee's evaluations of public, occupational and medical diagnostic exposures are mostly concerned with chronic exposures of …

sources and effects of ionizing radiation

Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is a clinically approved, minimally invasive therapeutic procedure that can exert a selective cytotoxic activity toward malignant cells. The procedure involves administration of a photosensitizing agent followed by irradiation at a wavelength corresponding to an absorbance band of the sensitizer. In the presence of oxygen, a series of events lead to direct tumor cell death, damage to the microvasculature, and induction of a local inflammatory reaction. Clinical studies revealed that PDT can be curative, particularly in early stage tumors. It can prolong survival in patients with inoperable cancers and significantly improve quality of life. Minimal normal tissue toxicity, negligible systemic effects, greatly reduced long-term morbidity, lack of intrinsic or acquired resistance mechanisms, and excellent cosmetic as well as organ function-sparing effects of this treatment make it a valuable therapeutic option for combination treatments. With a number of recent technological improvements, PDT has the potential to become integrated into the mainstream of cancer treatment. CA Cancer J Clin 2011;61:250-281. V C

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Photodynamic therapy of cancer: An update†‡

A review of reported tissue optical properties summarizes the wavelength-dependent behavior of scattering and absorption. Formulae are presented for generating the optical properties of a generic tissue with variable amounts of absorbing chromophores (blood, water, melanin, fat, yellow pigments) and a variable balance between small-scale scatterers and large-scale scatterers in the ultrastructures of cells and tissues.

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Optical properties of biological tissues: a review.

We present a novel fiber optic based singlet oxygen luminescence probe coupled to an InGaAs/InP single photon avalanche diode (SPAD) detector. Patterned time gating limited unwanted dark counts and eliminated the strong photosensitizer luminescence background.

A Compact Fiber Optic Based Singlet Oxygen Luminescence Sensor

Dose Prescription and Reporting in Stereotactic Body Radiotherapy: A Multi-Institutional Study.

Diffuse correlation spectroscopy has been applied for real-time monitoring of tumor blood flow responses to photodynamic therapy using two photosensitizers: Photofrin and Motexafin lutetium (MLu). The different photosensitizers exhibited different blood flow dynamics during PDT.

Timothy C. Zhu

Papers

A Compact Fiber Optic Based Singlet Oxygen Luminescence Sensor

Dose Prescription and Reporting in Stereotactic Body Radiotherapy: A Multi-Institutional Study.

Blood Flow Responses to Photodynamic Therapy with Two Photosensitizers: Photofrin and Motexafin Lutetium (MLu)