Since the first description of photodynamic therapy at the beginning of the last century there was an initial interest in antimicrobial treatment that was lost following Fleming’s discovery of penicillin. Subsequent development was focused on the treatment and mapping of cancer and this remains a major focus. However the emergence of antibiotic resistant bacteria has caused us to revisit light activated antimicrobial treatments.
There are currently very few licensed drugs for PDT and most of the current clinical applications are focused on three drugs – the Photofrin ALA and Foscan and clinical examples will be shown to highlight the use of these albeit with a predominant focus on applications in the head and neck.
More recent studies have focused on the synergy of PDT with chemotherapy and immunotherapy as well as photochemical Internalisation and these will be outlined wherever possible (some details will be excluded as a result of a IP issues). There has also been an increase in activity in the use of PDT in low to middle income countries and I will give examples of these.
Lastly the increasing interest in antimicrobial PDT will be addressed as this is showing great promise in surgical site infection reduction.
In this presentation I will give an overview of current indications for PDT and opportunities for further research.