Innovative light sources for phototherapy

What is it about?

The use of light for therapeutic purposes dates back to ancient Egypt, where the sun itself was an innovative source, probably used for the first time to heal skin diseases. Since then, technical innovation and advancement in medical sciences have produced newer and more sophisticated solutions for light-emitting sources and their applications in medicine. Nowadays we can treat tumors with help of light: the results are extremely promising!

Featured Image

Photo by National Cancer Institute on Unsplash

Photo by National Cancer Institute on Unsplash

Why is it important?

We need new approaches to treating severe diseases such as tumors or chronic/antibiotic-resistance infections. We can use light to treat them but we need to solve the problem: "how can we bring light into our body?". This is a very challenging question but fortunately, extremely innovative and smart solutions have been proposed and used. We can have light-emitting pills or plaster, but also more exotic devices such as luminescent aerosol for the treatment of lung infections. Needle-implantable tiny light emitters can also be used, eventually powered by an external source. The need for non-invasive and effective alternative medical treatment is now pushing the brain of scientists.