PRP therapy for chest-wall radiation ulcer: a case report

Radiation ulcers are common complications resulting from radiotherapy. Traditional treatment methods primarily involve thorough wound debridement, continuous vacuum sealing drainage (VSD), and skin flap surgery; however, these approaches often have limited effectiveness and are prone to recurrence.

We report a case of platelet-rich plasma (PRP) therapy for a chest-wall radiation ulcer. A 50-year-old woman underwent radiation therapy to a chest wall scar, which led to persistent, recurrent skin rupture and exudation. Initial treatments, including antibiotics, antihistamines, wound debridement, and dressing changes, produced minimal improvement. The patient declined further interventions, such as extensive flap surgery. Subsequently, we applied PRP gel directly to the wound and administered PRP injections around the affected area.

Following this treatment, the radiation ulcer healed successfully. During subsequent follow-up, no recurrence of the ulcer was observed.

This case demonstrates that the combined use of externally applied PRP gel and periwound PRP injections is a feasible approach for treating radiation ulcers, especially in patients unresponsive to conventional treatments. Future studies with larger sample sizes are warranted to verify its long-term efficacy.