Photodynamic therapy of cancer: An update
2011/05/26 by Patrizia Agostinis, Kristian Berg, Keith A. Cengel +16 · 5,120 citations
Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology · Engineering · Medicine · #Cancer #Cancer research #Cancer treatment #Cancer, Hypoxia, and Metabolism #Internal medicine #Medicine #Nanoplatforms for cancer theranostics #Oncology #Pharmacology #Photodynamic Therapy Research Studies #Photodynamic therapy #Therapeutic effect #Toxicity
paper · pdf · doi:10.3322/caac.20114
published in CA A Cancer Journal for Clinicians 61(4), 250-281 (Wiley)
openalex publication_date 2011/05/26 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/05
Abstract
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.
Cited by
- Overcoming obstacles in the tumor microenvironment: Recent advancements in nanoparticle delivery for cancer theranostics
- Quantum Algorithms for Photoreactivity in Cancer-Targeted Photosensitizers
- Poly(D,L-lactide-co-glycolide) nanoparticles as delivery agents for photodynamic therapy: enhancing singlet oxygen release and photototoxicity by surface PEG coating
- Photodynamic therapy – mechanisms, photosensitizers and combinations
- Current advances in nanoformulations of therapeutic agents targeting tumor microenvironment to overcome drug resistance
- Photodynamic and Photothermal Therapies: Synergy Opportunities for Nanomedicine
- Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor: Key to Selective Intracellular Delivery
- Application of metal–organic framework-based reactive oxygen species therapy in cancer
- A potent mannose-modified pillararene-BODIPY system for photodynamic therapy
- Photodynamic Therapy Review: Principles, Photosensitizers, Applications, and Future Directions
- Clinical development and potential of photothermal and photodynamic therapies for cancer
- Deficiency of δ‐Aminolevulinate Dehydratase Confers a Survival Advantage and Drives Malignancy in Cancer
- Rare-Earth Doping in Nanostructured Inorganic Materials
- Integrin targeted photodynamic therapy in patient‐derived glioblastoma spheroids
- Soranjidiol as a photosensitizer: Mechanistic insights into its photochemistry and photoinduced tautomerization
- Gas Plasma Technology and Immunogenic Cell Death: Implications for Chordoma Treatment
- An antibody-photosensitiser bioconjugate overcomes trastuzumab resistance in HER2-positive breast cancer
- Recent progress in photosensitizers for overcoming the challenges of photodynamic therapy: from molecular design to application
- Nanotechnology for Multimodal Synergistic Cancer Therapy
- Precise Two‐Photon Photodynamic Therapy using an Efficient Photosensitizer with Aggregation‐Induced Emission Characteristics
- Photopharmacology: Beyond Proof of Principle
- Photodynamic Therapy: A Brief History
- The role of oxidative stress and antioxidant therapy in cisplatin neurotoxicity: preclinical evidence in the last decade
- Comparative study of the effect of photo and photoacoustic stimulation on singlet oxygen production of neutral and water-soluble cationic zinc phthalocyanines
- BODIPY dyes in photodynamic therapy. [europepmc]
- Single continuous wave laser induced photodynamic/plasmonic photothermal therapy using photosensitizer-functionalized gold nanostars. [europepmc]
- Antimicrobial strategies centered around reactive oxygen species--bactericidal antibiotics, photodynamic therapy, and beyond. [europepmc]
- A smart and versatile theranostic nanomedicine platform based on nanoporphyrin. [europepmc]
- Autofluorescence spectroscopy and imaging: a tool for biomedical research and diagnosis. [europepmc]
- Glycosylated Porphyrins, Phthalocyanines, and Other Porphyrinoids for Diagnostics and Therapeutics. [europepmc]
- Molecular and Translational Classifications of DAMPs in Immunogenic Cell Death. [europepmc]
- New photosensitizers for photodynamic therapy. [europepmc]
- Antimicrobial photodynamic inactivation: a bright new technique to kill resistant microbes. [europepmc]
- Reactive oxygen species generating systems meeting challenges of photodynamic cancer therapy. [europepmc]
- Photoantimicrobials-are we afraid of the light? [europepmc]
- Proposed Mechanisms of Photobiomodulation or Low-Level Light Therapy. [europepmc]
- Oncologic Photodynamic Therapy: Basic Principles, Current Clinical Status and Future Directions. [europepmc]
- Light in diagnosis, therapy and surgery. [europepmc]
- Neutrophil-Based Drug Delivery Systems. [europepmc]
- Tumor targeting via EPR: Strategies to enhance patient responses. [europepmc]
- Nanoparticle-Mediated Immunogenic Cell Death Enables and Potentiates Cancer Immunotherapy. [europepmc]
- Clinical development of photodynamic agents and therapeutic applications. [europepmc]
- Transition Metal Complexes and Photodynamic Therapy from a Tumor-Centered Approach: Challenges, Opportunities, and Highlights from the Development of TLD1433. [europepmc]
- Myeloid immunosuppression and immune checkpoints in the tumor microenvironment. [europepmc]
- Reactive Oxygen Species-Related Nanoparticle Toxicity in the Biomedical Field. [europepmc]
- Targeting immunogenic cancer cell death by photodynamic therapy: past, present and future. [europepmc]
- Photodynamic Therapy-Current Limitations and Novel Approaches. [europepmc]
- Photodynamic Therapy Review: Principles, Photosensitizers, Applications, and Future Directions. [europepmc]
- Photodynamic and Photothermal Therapies: Synergy Opportunities for Nanomedicine. [europepmc]
Related