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Updated: Apr 6, 2026
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Systematic Assessment of Well-Being in Mice for Procedures Using General Anesthesia
Published on: March 20, 2018
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Anesthesia, surgical stress, and "long-term" outcomes
Masae Iwasaki1, Matthew Edmondson2, Atsuhiro Sakamoto3
1Anesthetics, Pain Medicine and Intensive Care, Department of Surgery and Cancer, Imperial College London, Chelsea and Westminster Hospital, London, UK; Department of Anaesthesiology, Nippon Medical School, Tokyo, Japan.
Summary
Regional anesthesia may offer benefits by reducing stress responses and preserving organ function. Volatile general anesthetics might promote cancer progression by suppressing immune activity, warranting further research.
Area of Science:
- Anesthesiology
- Oncology
- Immunology
Background:
- The choice of anesthetic impacts patient outcomes beyond anesthesia quality.
- Regional and general anesthesia are compared for their effects on stress response and cancer progression.
Purpose of the Study:
- To compare the effects of regional versus general anesthesia on the stress response and cancer progression.
- To evaluate the potential benefits of regional anesthesia and risks associated with volatile general anesthetics.
Main Methods:
- Review of existing evidence comparing regional and general anesthesia.
- Analysis of anesthetic effects on physiological stress markers (cortisol, catecholamines) and immune function (natural killer cells).
Main Results:
- Regional anesthesia suppresses stress markers and muscle breakdown, with less immunosuppression.
- Volatile general anesthetics may promote cancer malignancy and impair natural killer cell activity.
- Potential preservation of vital organ function with regional anesthesia requires further investigation.
Conclusions:
- Regional anesthesia demonstrates advantages in modulating stress response and immune function.
- Volatile general anesthetics raise concerns regarding cancer progression.
- Current evidence does not support altering clinical practice, but further research is crucial.
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