Cancer treatment with gas plasma and with gas plasma-activated liquid: positives, potentials and problems of clinical translation

Gas plasmas, created in atmospheric pressure conditions, both thermal (hot) and non-thermal (cold) are emerging as useful tools in medicine. During surgery, hot gas plasmas are useful to reduce thermal damage and seal blood vessels. Gas plasma pens use cold gas plasma to produce reactive chemical species with selective action against cancers, which can be readily exposed in surgery or treated from outside of the body. Solutions activated by cold gas plasma have potential as a novel treatment modality for treatment of less readily accessible tumours, or those with high metastatic potential. This review summarises the preclinical and clinical trial evidence currently available, as well as the challenges for translation of direct gas plasma and gas plasma-activated solution treatment into regular practice.