Abstract
The efficacy of conventional radiation therapy, one of the most widely used treatment modalities of cancer, is limited by resistance of tumors as well as normal tissue toxicity. In the last decade, several studies have shown that protocols using low-dose radiation (LDR) are more effective in providing local tumor control with negligible normal tissue toxicity. LDR stimulates antioxidant capacity, repair of DNA damage, apoptosis and induction of immune responses, which might be collectively responsible for providing effective local tumor control. This article focuses on the immunostimulatory effects of LDR in in vivo models and its clinical efficacy, supporting the use of LDR regimens (alone or as adjuvant) as an anticancer treatment.
Acknowledgements
The authors are grateful to RP Tripathi, Director INMAS, for his keen interest and constant encouragement.
Financial & competing interests disclosure
Abdullah Farooque and Saurabh Singh have been the recipients of fellowships from UGC, while Rohit Mathur, Vandana Kaul and Amit Verma were supported by Fellowships from CSIR, CSIR and ICMR, respectively. The authors have no other relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript apart from those disclosed.
No writing assistance was utilized in the production of this manuscript.