Laser-assisted cancer treatment

Applying heat to destroy a tumor has been started since 1700 BC when a fired-drill was used to destroy breast cancer, known as a term of hyperthermia. In thermal therapy, the selective destruction of tumor cells is induced due to their low level of heat tolerance compared to normal tissues lead to incomplete blood vessel formation. Inducing moderate heat in the desired site is achieved by ultrasound waves, microwaves, radiofrequency, and laser. The emergence of laser in thermal therapy to deliver heat to the desired site brings a revolution in cancer therapy. There are several approaches to employ laser in cancer therapy such as laser ablation, surgery, photodynamic therapy (PDT), photothermal therapy (PTT), and triggering an anticancer drug delivery. In this chapter, PDT, PTT, and laser-assisted anticancer drug delivery will be discussed. Also, a model to calculate the optical properties of the nanoparticles for cancer therapy will be overviewed.