Anti-cancer therapies of 21st century: Novel approach to treat human cancers using cold atmospheric plasma

Cold atmospheric plasma (CAP) has just recently been showing promising anti-cancer activities supported by ability to induce cell death via apoptosis and cell cycle arrest leading to tumor cell destruction in vitro, and in vivo. Several studies showed the ability of CAP-activated media to modulate the tumor cell environment a link between the generation of reactive oxygen species/reactive nitrogen species and cancer cell death following CAP treatment. Targeting cancer cells through ROS-mediated mechanisms has become an attractive strategy for effective and selective cancer treatment by exploiting the aberrant redox characteristics of cancer cells. These effects support the potential direct (CAP) and indirect (CAP-activated media) applications for adjuvant anti-cancer therapeutics, in a combination with the chemo-, radio-, and nano-therapies.