Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is a photochemistry based treatment modality that involves the generation of cytotoxic species through the interactions of a photosensitizer molecule with light irradiation of an appropriate wavelength. PDT is an approved therapeutic modality for several cancers globally and in several cases has proved to be effective where traditional treatments have failed. The key parameters that determine PDT efficacy are 1. the photosensitizer (nature of the molecules, selectivity, and macroscopic and microscopic localization etc.), 2. light application (wavelength, fluence, fluence rate, irradiation regimes etc.) and 3. the microenvironment (vascularity, hypoxic regions, stromal tissue density, molecular heterogeneity etc.). Over the years, several groups aimed to monitor and manipulate the components of these critical parameters to improve the effectiveness of PDT treatments. However, PDT is still misconstrued to be a surface treatment primarily due to the limited depths of light penetration. In this review, we present the recent advances, strategies and perspectives in PDT approaches, particularly in cancer treatment, that focus on increasing the 'damage zone' beyond the reach of light in the body. This is enabled by a spectrum of approaches that range from innovative photosensitizer excitation strategies, increased specificity of phototoxicity, and biomodulatory approaches that amplify the biotherapeutic effects induced by photodynamic action. Along with the increasing depth of understanding of the underlying physical, chemical and physiological mechanisms, it is anticipated that with the convergence of these strategies, the clinical utility of PDT will be expanded to a powerful modality in the armamentarium for the management of cancer.

Bladder cancer is the 9th leading cause of cancer death worldwide. The major problem in bladder cancer is primarily the high recurrence rate after drug treatment and resection. Although conventional screening methods, such as cystoscopy, urinary cytology and ultrasound sonography, have become widely used in clinical settings, the diagnostic performance of these modalities is unsatisfactory due to low accuracy or high invasiveness. Because circulating micro RNA (miRNA) profiles have recently been reported as an attractive tool for liquid biopsy in cancer screening, here, we performed global miRNA profiling of 392 serum samples of bladder cancer patients with 100 non‐cancer samples and 480 samples of other types of cancer as controls. We randomly classified the bladder cancer and control samples into 2 cohorts, a training set (N = 486) and a validation set (N = 486). By comparing both controls, we identified specific miRNA, such as miR‐6087, for diagnosing bladder cancer in the training and validation sets. Furthermore, we found that a combination of 7 miRNA (7‐miRNA panel: miR‐6087, miR‐6724‐5p, miR‐3960, miR‐1343‐5p, miR‐1185‐1‐3p, miR‐6831‐5p and miR‐4695‐5p) could discriminate bladder cancer from non‐cancer and other types of tumors with the highest accuracy (AUC: .97; sensitivity: 95%; specificity: 87%). The diagnostic accuracy was high, regardless of the stage and grade of bladder cancer. Our data demonstrated that the 7‐miRNA panel could be a biomarker for the specific and early detection of bladder cancer.

Purpose: The high false-positive rate of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) may lead to unnecessary prostate biopsies. Therefore, the United States Preventive Services Task Force recommends that decisions regarding PSA-based screening of prostate cancer should be made with caution in men ages 55-69 years, and that men !70 years should not undergo PSA screening. Here, we investigated the potential of serum miRNAs as an accurate diagnostic method in patients with suspected prostate cancer.Experimental Design: Serum samples of 809 patients with prostate cancer, 241 negative prostate biopsies, and 500 patients with other cancer types were obtained from the National Cancer Center, Japan. Forty-one healthy control samples were obtained from two other hospitals in Japan. Comprehensive microarray analysis was performed for all samples. Samples were divided into three sets.Candidate miRNAs for prostate cancer detection were identified in the discovery set (n ¼ 123). A diagnostic model was constructed using combinations of candidate miRNAs in the training set (n ¼ 484). The performance of the diagnostic model was evaluated in the validation set (n ¼ 484).Results: In the discovery set, 18 candidate miRNAs were identified. A robust diagnostic model was constructed using the combination of two miRNAs (miR-17-3p and miR-1185-2-3p) in the training set. High diagnostic performance with a sensitivity of 90% and a specificity of 90% was achieved in the validation set regardless of the Gleason score and clinical tumor-node-metastasis stage.Conclusions: The model developed in this study may help improve the diagnosis of prostate cancer and reduce the number of unnecessary prostate biopsies.

A large subset of patients with chronic renal failure showed PBMC resistance to cyclosporine and prednisolone. Hyperresistant patients have a high risk of being refractory to immunosuppressive therapy with one of these drugs. Alternative treatment should be considered according to the individual drug-sensitivity data.