Authors: D. Blanc, H. Ficheux, N. Just, O. Duchamp, F. Bichat
NEGMA-LERADS – STEBA NV, ONCODESIGN
Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is a cancer therapy in which drug action is locally activated by light: the photosensitization of a non-toxic circulating sensitizer generates cytotoxicity and causes cell death and necrosis of the tumor tissue.
Although, PDT was used in superficial human lesions readily accessible to laser illumination, few studies have been reported in human prostate cancer, one main limitation of the technique being the limited depth of the treatment due to the properties of the sensitizer.
Tookad® is a bacteriopheophorbides photosensitizer for PDT which targets the tumor vasculature upon illumination with light in the nearinfrared wavelengths. Tookad® has been successfully evaluated in several preclinical models.
The objective of this study was to evaluate the antitumor effects of PDT with Tookad® in the PC3-M human prostate cancer model orthotopically xenografted in nude rats.