Effect of hematoporphyrin and red light on AH-130 solid tumors in rats

Thirty Wistar albino rats with a subcutaneous Yoshida hepatoma AH-130 were exposed to 590 to 690 nm LIGHT from a high pressure Xenon arc-lamp 24 h after intraperitoneal injection of hematoporphyrin, 5 to 10 mg/kg. In all cases, the tumor decreased rapidly in size, due to necrosis caused both by direct action of the photoactivated porphyrin on the tumor cells and by secondary effects on blood vessels. No injury of normal tissues was detected. At 2 months after phototreatment, no recurrence had occurred and the skin over the tumor area was healed. Favourable therapeutic response was obtained in preliminary experiments by irradiating the Hp-injected tumor-bearing rats with 632.8 nm-light from an He/Ne laser source.