Pulsed electric fields: a sharp sword in the battle against cancers

Area of Science:

• Biophysics
• Oncology
• Biomedical Engineering

Background:

• Cancer poses a significant global health challenge.
• Conventional cancer therapies (surgery, chemotherapy, radiotherapy) have limitations.
• Emerging technologies are needed to improve cancer treatment efficacy and patient outcomes.

Purpose of the Study:

• To introduce the fundamental principles of pulsed electric fields (PEFs).
• To review the current applications of PEFs in cancer treatment.
• To discuss the future prospects and research directions for PEFs in oncology.

Main Methods:

• Review of existing scientific literature on PEFs and cancer therapy.
• Analysis of the biophysical mechanisms underlying PEF-induced cell death (electroporation, internal electrical processing).
• Synthesis of data on PEF applications across various cancer types.

Main Results:

• PEFs induce targeted cell death in tumor cells via electroporation and internal electrical processing.
• PEFs demonstrate potential as a localized and non-thermal cancer treatment modality.
• Research indicates promising preclinical and early clinical results for PEF-based cancer therapies.

Conclusions:

• Pulsed electric fields represent a promising, innovative approach to cancer treatment.
• Further research and clinical trials are warranted to optimize PEF protocols and expand their therapeutic applications.
• PEFs offer a potential complementary or alternative strategy to conventional cancer therapies.