Hyperbaric Oxygenation to Enhance Radiotherapy in Malignant Gliomas

Hyperbaric Oxygenation to Enhance Radiotherapy in Malignant Gliomas

Kohshi and colleagues investigated whether giving radiotherapy immediately after hyperbaric oxygen (HBO) could improve treatment outcomes for patients with malignant gliomas, aggressive brain tumors that are often resistant to standard radiation. Their non-randomized clinical study compared patients treated with radiotherapy following HBO to those treated with radiation alone, focusing on tumor regression and survival after combined therapy.
In the HBO group, patients were exposed to high-pressure oxygen sessions immediately before daily radiotherapy, with decompression to normal pressure occurring less than 30 minutes before treatment. The comparison group received radiotherapy without preceding HBO. Tumor response was assessed using imaging, and median survival times were compared between groups.
Patients who received radiotherapy after HBO showed higher rates of significant tumor regression and longer median survival than those treated with radiotherapy alone. Most responders in the HBO group were irradiated within 15 minutes after oxygen decompression, suggesting that timing of oxygen delivery relative to radiotherapy may be critical. No serious side effects attributable to HBO were observed, supporting the tolerability of the combined approach.
Although this was a non-randomized study and cannot definitively prove that HBO improves clinical outcomes, the findings provide clinically relevant evidence that modifying tumor oxygenation can enhance radiation effectiveness in malignant gliomas. This research supports further investigation of oxygenation strategies as adjuncts to radiotherapy in aggressive brain cancers.

Reference:

Kohshi K, Kinoshita Y, Imada H, Kunugita N, Abe H, Terashima H, Tokui N, Uemura S. Effects of radiotherapy after hyperbaric oxygenation on malignant gliomas. Br J Cancer. 1999;80(1‑2):236–241. doi:10.1038/sj.bjc.6690345. PMID: 10390002.