Perspective of strategic plasma therapy for prognostic improvement of patients with ovarian cancer

Epithelial ovarian carcinoma (EOC) is the leading cause of cancer-related death in women in Western countries. Once patients experience recurrence, complete cure is almost impossible. We elucidated the effect of nonequilibrium atmospheric pressure plasma on the growth of EOC, particularly in plasma-activated medium (PAM). Furthermore, we examined the role of reactive oxygen species (ROS) or their scavengers in chronic antineoplastic-resistant EOC cells. As a result, we showed PAM induced the antitumor effect of EOC cells in vitro and in vivo, even in chemoresistant cells. To apply the plasma treatment for advanced or recurrent EOC, we suggest adopting indirect plasma therapy instead of direct plasma considering intraperitoneal administration in the future. However, there are several problems under investigation, including intracellular mechanism of antitumor effect by PAM and adverse event in vivo.