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| Patient receiving photodynamic therapy |
Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is a treatment that uses special drugs, called photosensitizing agents, along with light to kill cancer cells. The drugs only work after they have been activated by certain kinds of light.
How does PDT work?
- The medication is either injected into the bloodstream or applied to the skin. After the drug is absorbed by the cancer cells, a light source is applied to the area being treated. The light causes the drug to react with oxygen, which forms a chemical that kills the cancer cells.
- It may also work by destroying the blood vessels that feed the cancer cells and helping the immune system attack the cancer.
- It can only be used to treat areas that light can reach, so it is mainly used for cancer on or just under the skin, or in the lining of internal organs.
- The medications used in PDT may travel throughout the body, but the treatment works only at the area exposed to light. PDT is not effective in treating extensive cancers.
Pros and Cons
Pros:
- It has no long-term side effects when used properly.
- It is less invasive than surgery
- It usually takes only a short time and is most often done as an outpatient.
- It can be targeted very precisely.
- Unlike radiation, PDT can be repeated many times at the same site if needed.
- There is little or no scarring after the site heals.
- It often costs less than other cancer treatments.
Cons:
- It can only treat areas where light can reach.
- Unable to treat cancers that have spread to many places because the drugs may travel throughout the body, but the treatment only works at the area that is exposed to light.
- Due to its photosensitivity, patients must be careful to not expose themselves in the bright light. A gradual increase in bright light exposure neutralizes the drug slowly, and photosensitivity diminishes. As a result, patients develop temporary skin darkening, much like having a suntan.
- It causes inflammation which can cause pain as the diseased tissue breaks down.
- It causes shortness of breath.
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