Further application of hyperbaric oxygen in prostate cancer

Hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) has been used as an adjuvant treatment for multiple pathological states, which involves hypoxic conditions. Over the past 50 years, HBOT has been recommended and used in a wide variety of medical conditions, clinically in the treatment of ischemic or nonhealing wounds and radiation-injured tissue, and in the treatment of malignancy. The mechanism of this treatment is providing oxygen under pressure which is higher than the atmosphere thus increasing tissue oxygen concentration. When cells get enough oxygen in the microenvironment, they become active and replicate effectively. Prostate cancer is the second most common cancer and the fifth leading cause of cancer death among male around the world. It is estimated that more than 29,000 men died from metastatic prostate cancer in 2014. With the development of the prostate-specific antigen-based screening technology, prostate cancer incidence has increased markedly over time. According to the survey, the morbidity and mortality of prostate cancer have surpassed bladder cancer and renal carcinoma, becoming the most common cancer in urology in Chinese adults. Nowadays, the main solution to deal with prostate cancer is still the surgical ways, including laparoscopic radical prostatectomy and robot-assisted radical prostatectomy. Nevertheless, the complications of the surgical treatment have not been completely avoided. HBOT has gained great clinical recognition over the decade. It has been demonstrated that HBOT has considerable effects on carcinoma, especially on decreasing complications and improving mortality. So, it is important to combine the HBOT with patients who suffer from prostate cancer. This review illuminates the effect and underlying mechanism of the HBOT in prostate cancer for further clinical application.