Electrochemotherapy as First Line Cancer Treatment: Experiences from Veterinary Medicine in Developing Novel...

Area of Science:

• Oncology
• Biomedical Engineering
• Veterinary Medicine

Background:

• Tumor microenvironment hinders chemotherapy efficacy due to poor drug distribution.
• Electrochemotherapy (ECT) uses electric pulses to enhance drug delivery and efficacy.
• ECT allows use of lipophobic drugs with narrow therapeutic indices, reducing patient morbidity.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review the current state of electrochemotherapy in veterinary oncology.
• To highlight its role as a preclinical model and emerging first-line treatment.
• To report on new drug and combination therapy protocols.

Main Methods:

• Systemic or local delivery of anticancer drugs.
• Application of permeabilizing electric pulses with specific amplitude and waveforms.
• Review of existing literature and clinical data in veterinary oncology.

Main Results:

• ECT demonstrates high efficacy and low toxicity in veterinary cancer treatment.
• It is effective for various cancer histotypes and clinical conditions.
• Standard operating procedures are established for human use, with growing veterinary applications.

Conclusions:

• Electrochemotherapy is a promising and effective treatment modality in veterinary oncology.
• Its ability to overcome drug distribution issues in the tumor microenvironment is crucial.
• Ongoing research focuses on optimizing drug choices and combination therapies for improved outcomes.