Skin cancer may be treated with light in the near future. A US study has show that a newly designed LED-powered device may be used in the treatment of skin cancer.
The research led by Dr. Rolf Saager, working in the laboratory of Anthony Durkin at the Beckman Laser Institute at University of California, Irvine (UC Irvine) insist that LEDs can enhance the photo-dynamic therapy (PDT), a procedure commonly used for curing cancer.
PDT is a process in which photo-sensitizing chemicals that absorb light are possibly infused into a tumor and then the tumor is exposed to the light.
The oxygen radicals that are emitted by the light energy help the chemicals in destroying the cancer cells, the researchers asserted.
It's reported that PDT has already got the US Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) approval for treating esophageal and lung cancer.
The present team of scientists discovered a new device that is equipped with an array of five different LED lights.
Dr. Saager said, "Through this imaging modality, it is now possible to assess how the therapeutic light will travel throughout the affected tissue, quantify the drug present within the lesion and monitor its efficacy during treatment."
