Hyperthermia in cervical cancer - current status

This article reviews the salient features of recent results of clinical studies. It puts a special emphasis on technical aspects, mechanisms of action together with radiotherapy and chemotherapy and points out areas for additional investigation.

To present the current state of knowledge on hyperthermia (HT) and to highlight its role in the treatment of cervical cancer.

The literature on the clinical use of combined hyperthermia for cervical cancer was analyzed. Clinical outcomes together with the technical aspects and the role of HT were also evaluated.

Clinically randomized trials have demonstrated benefit including survival with the addition of hyperthermia to radiation or chemotherapy in the treatment of cervical cancer without significant acute or late morbidities. The technological advances have led to an effective and safer treatment delivery, thermal treatment planning, thermal dose monitoring and online adaptive temperature modulation.

Due to rapid development over the last decade of hyperthermia systems and new studies at the basic science and clinical level, the perception of hyperthermia as a part of multimodality treatment in cervical cancer has been changed. However, there is still a need for multicentre randomized clinical trials.