Anticancerous plasma-electro-chemotherapy: first in-vivo studies

International audience; Following in vitro assessment of cancer cells and the benefit of a combined treatment based on incubation with plasma treated solution and application of Pulsed Electric Field in the context of reversible cell membrane permeabilization, this work reports on the in vivo evaluation of such combined innovative antitumor approach. Three independent studies, dealing with immunocompetent mice bearing fibrosarcoma tumors and involving control groups, PEF treated group (Bleomycine Electro Chemo Therapy (ECT) and combined plasma treated PBS (p-PBS) and PEF treatments, were performed. A single-shot treatment was applied 12 days after tumor cell injection, and follow up of tumor volume was performed for more than two months. The main conclusions of these studies indicate that (i) p-PBS production and storage was highly reproducible and allow for in vivo studies requiring large volume of such solutions; (ii) Bleomycin, p-PBS, and their combined injection has no antitumor action; (iii) ECT as a reference therapy is efficient, especially for fast growing tumors; (iv) combined p-PBS and ECT treatment allow for a slower tumor growthrate, for fast growing tumors, and lead to a significant increase of the number of tumor regressions; and (v) composition of p-PBS solution for different plasma exposures might be a unique parameter for a fine tuning of the efficiency of the combined antitumor treatment.