Hyperbaric oxygen therapy for cancer

AS it turns out, the pressurised oxygen chambers we use to stabilise deep-sea divers who come up with the bends can also be used to treat cancer.

First things first: this is not a cure-all for cancer. Nothing is. Hyperbaric oxygen therapy – exposure to high pressure oxygen – is a procedure which can be used as an adjunct to other cancer treatments. Application of the technique so far has been limited but the results are positive.

Knowledge of the healing power of oxygen is nothing new. Pressure chambers similar to the tanks used to help divers with decompression sickness have been employed to speed the healing of injured athletes.

They’re also well known for their anti-ageing effects. In fact, the widespread interest in anti-ageing medicine is likely to be the vehicle by which hyperbaric oxygen expands its popularity and further integrates into cancer treatment programs.

Dr. Mark Rosenberg is an international integrative medicine expert and a top doctor in the US. He spoke last weekend about the effectiveness of oxygen therapy on cancer at the AustralAsian Academy of Anti-Ageing Medicine conference in Melbourne.

“There are many studies using hyperbaric oxygen for cancer,” he told SuperLiving before the event. “In my lecture I reference probably about 40 studies. This is not new; it just does not get the publicity that many of the drugs do.”

How does it work?

Contrary to common intuition, tumours actually thrive in low-oxygen environments. When deprived of oxygen, a cancerous tumour will spread out to increase its blood supply, worsening the condition. Hyperbaric oxygen therapy can therefore keep cancers in check by removing a trigger of proliferation.

High pressure oxygen treatments don’t kill cancer cells but can work well in conjunction with radiotherapy.

“Effective radiation relies on oxygen to create free radicals and kill whatever tissue you’re trying to kill,” Rosenberg explained. “For example, we know that tissues that are extremely poorly oxygenated – let’s say you have a tumour with very poor blood supply – then the radiation doesn’t work as well.

“There are many studies out there showing [that] if you combine hyperbaric oxygen therapy with radiation, you get at least an additive, if not a synergistic effect. It can potentiate the effect of radiation therapy.”

Rosenberg is enthusiastic about the possibilities of oxygen treatment and reports on the progress of the technique’s practical implementation in his home country.

“I’m actually treating a patient with an aggressive brain tumour called glioblastoma multiforme,” he said. “One of the adjuncts we are using is hyperbaric oxygen therapy and he’s doing very, very well.

“Just recently in the past month or two, it was announced that a hospital in the States will be starting a trial specifically for these brain tumours where they’re using hyperbaric oxygen therapy as an adjunct. Based on the data, it suggests it’s helpful, so they’re actually enrolling patients as we speak.

“If someone went to an oncologist they wouldn’t normally get [hyperbaric oxygen therapy], but certainly in the States, there are hyperbaric facilities where a person can go on their own and get hyperbaric oxygen.”

Chamber of commerce

Hyperbaric oxygen chambers are accessible in some Australian hospitals and can even be purchased for the home. Portable units are typically canvas but hardshell chambers have begun to appear commercially.

For fire safety reasons, portable units apply room air rather than 100% oxygen. They usually max out at around 1.3 atmospheres of pressure, that is, about a third higher than normal air pressure on your skin at sea level. Rosenberg says there’s generally no health concerns with this kind of model since the pressure is so mild.

With the hardshell chambers, however, you can really turn up the pressure. That could lead to a number of barometric accidents including oxygen toxicity, which can induce seizures.

Also, patients with a brain tumour with significant swelling and already under a lot of pressure should be extremely cautious with high-pressure oxygen treatments. Even with the safe portable chambers, it can be dangerous to increase stress on a brain which is already experiencing elevated, tumour-related pressure.