Biosensors and Bioelectronics: X (Sep 2022)
Electrical based cancer therapy for solid tumours - Theranostics approach
Abstract
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), more than 700,000 women have been diagnosed with cancer in the last five years. Cancers of the breast, cervical, ovarian, lung, uterine, and thyroid are among the most prevalent cancers in women. For over a century, surgery, radiation, and pharmaceutical treatment have been the cornerstones of cancer treatment. When used alone or in combination, these medicines have improved therapeutic outcomes for patients with a variety of solid and diffuse malignancies, but there is still a significant unmet demand for improved survival and quality of life. As seen by the advancement from first laboratory observations to the completion of multiple clinical trials, electrical-based cancer therapies have made remarkable progress as a potential therapeutic agent for the treatment of many solid tumours. Electric field lines have the opportunity to utilize force on charged molecules, which distinguishes them. By interacting with polar molecules like tubulin and disrupting the mitotic spindle, electric fields can potentially have an antimitotic effect on cells, reducing or stopping cell proliferation. In a range of tumour types, Tumor Treating Fields (TTFields) have been found to have anti-mitotic effects. The combined effect of TTFields and paclitaxel increased apoptosis-mediated anti-mitotic tumour progression inhibition. In conclusion, this study provides an overview of the most common female cancers as well as an up-to-date assessment of the therapy options for these diseases. It also covers the use of electric module therapy for certain tumours, its putative mechanisms, and a synthesis of its benefits and drawbacks during cancer treatment.
