Dear colleagues,
I'd like to find some references documenting the biological reactions of tumour versus normal tissue to heat-based ablations, in terms of cellular sensitivity/resistance and damages caused.
Regards,
D. DETAILLE, PhD
Dear Dr. Dominique Detaille
High temperatures can kill cancer cells outright, but they can also injure or kill normal cells and tissues. Therefore, when hyperthermia is considered, it must be carefully controlled.
Hyperthermia may kill or weaken tumor cells and is controlled to limit effects on healthy cells. Tumor cells, with a disorganized and compact vascular structure, have difficulty dissipating heat. Hyperthermia may therefore cause cancerous cells to undergo apoptosis in direct response to applied heat, while healthy tissues can more easily maintain a normal temperature.
Even if the cancerous cells do not die outright, they may become more susceptible to ionizing radiation therapy or to certain chemotherapy drugs, which may allow such therapy to be given in smaller doses. Intense heating will cause denaturation and coagulation of cellular proteins, rapidly killing cells within the targeted tissue. A mild heat treatment combined with other stresses (excitation of the appropriate signal pathways) can cause cell death by apoptosis. There are many biochemical consequences to the heat shock response within the cell, including slowed cell division and increased sensitivity to ionizing radiation therapy.
Hyperthermia can kill cells directly, increasing blood flow to the warmed area, perhaps doubling perfusion in tumors, while increasing perfusion in normal tissue by ten times or even more. This enhances the delivery of medications. Hyperthermia also increases oxygen delivery to the area, which may make radiation more likely to damage and kill cells, as well as preventing cells from repairing the damage induced during the radiation session.
You may want to refer to the articles attached below for more information.
Article Hyperthermia versus Oncothermia: Cellular Effects in Complem...
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1365-2184.1992.tb01482.x?sid=nlm%3Apubmed
Article Cellular responses to hyperthermia (40–46 ° C): Cell killing...
Article The cellular and molecular basis of hyperthermia
Article Two Distinct Modes of Hyperthermic Cell Death
Article Hyperthermic Biology and Cancer Therapies
Regards,
Malcolm Nobre
Dear Malcolm Nobre ,
Thank you very much for your detailed and well-sourced reply. To briefly go further, what happens now if higher temperatures (e.g. during thermal ablation) are applied ? Do the differences between healthy and tumour tissues disappear completely?
Regards,
Dominique DETAILLE
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