Cold atmospheric plasma in cancer therapy

Journal Article · Wed May 15 00:00:00 EDT 2013 · Physics of Plasmas

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1063/1.4801516· OSTI ID:22228119

Keidar, Michael; Shashurin, Alex; Volotskova, Olga ^[1]; Ann Stepp, Mary ^[2]; Srinivasan, Priya; Sandler, Anthony ^[3]; Trink, Barry ^[4]

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1. Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, George Washington University, Washington DC 20052 (United States)
2. Medical School, George Washington University, Washington DC 20052 (United States)
3. Childrens National Medical Center, Washington DC 20010 (United States)
4. Head and Neck Cancer Research Division, Department of Otolaryngology, School of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland 21205 (United States)

Recent progress in atmospheric plasmas has led to the creation of cold plasmas with ion temperature close to room temperature. This paper outlines recent progress in understanding of cold plasma physics as well as application of cold atmospheric plasma (CAP) in cancer therapy. Varieties of novel plasma diagnostic techniques were developed recently in a quest to understand physics of CAP. It was established that the streamer head charge is about 10{sup 8} electrons, the electrical field in the head vicinity is about 10{sup 7} V/m, and the electron density of the streamer column is about 10{sup 19} m{sup −3}. Both in-vitro and in-vivo studies of CAP action on cancer were performed. It was shown that the cold plasma application selectively eradicates cancer cells in-vitro without damaging normal cells and significantly reduces tumor size in-vivo. Studies indicate that the mechanism of action of cold plasma on cancer cells is related to generation of reactive oxygen species with possible induction of the apoptosis pathway. It is also shown that the cancer cells are more susceptible to the effects of CAP because a greater percentage of cells are in the S phase of the cell cycle.

• OSTI ID: 22228119
• Journal Information: Physics of Plasmas, Vol. 20, Issue 5; Other Information: (c) 2013 AIP Publishing LLC; Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 1070-664X
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY
62 RADIOLOGY AND NUCLEAR MEDICINE
APOPTOSIS
BIOPHYSICS
CELL CYCLE
COLD PLASMA
DIAGNOSTIC TECHNIQUES
ELECTRIC DISCHARGES
ELECTRIC FIELDS
ELECTRON DENSITY
ELECTRON TEMPERATURE
ELECTRONS
IN VITRO
IN VIVO
ION TEMPERATURE
NEOPLASMS
PATIENTS
PLASMA DIAGNOSTICS
RADIOTHERAPY
TEMPERATURE RANGE 0273-0400 K