# Electrochemotherapy

Source: https://onco.cc/technologies/electrochemotherapy/  
OnCo record `electrochemotherapy` (Technology). Data CC BY-NC 4.0, attribute "Data from OnCo (onco.cc)"; commercial use needs a licence.

## TL;DR

Brief electric pulses applied to a tumour open pores in cell membranes so that a tiny dose of bleomycin or cisplatin floods in; used for skin metastases and, increasingly, for deep tumours.

## Summary

Electroporation with 8 pulses of ~1000 V/cm makes cells transiently permeable, increasing bleomycin cytotoxicity several-hundred-fold and cisplatin ~80-fold. The ESOPE study (2006) standardised the procedure; the InspECT registry reports ~60% complete and ~85% overall response in cutaneous metastases of melanoma, breast cancer, Kaposi sarcoma and squamous carcinoma, with NICE guidance supporting use for skin metastases (2013). Endoscopic and needle-electrode systems extend it to liver metastases, pancreatic cancer, bone and head and neck tumours; calcium electroporation is a drug-free variant; combination with immunotherapy (abscopal effects) is being tested. Widely available in Europe, little used in the US (no FDA-cleared device).

## Fields

- Kind: Technology
- Status: established
- Last checked: 2026-09-08
- Tags: gap-fill
- Principle: Reversible electroporation increases membrane permeability to poorly permeant cytotoxics (bleomycin, cisplatin), producing localised cell death with systemic doses far below chemotherapeutic ranges; also causes vascular lock and immunogenic cell death.
- Since: 1991
- Strengths: High local response with minimal systemic toxicity; Single or few sessions; day case under local/general anaesthesia; Works regardless of tumour histology
- Limitations: Local treatment only; Requires electrodes to reach tumour (depth limits); No US device approval; limited randomised evidence

## Sources

- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electrochemotherapy
- ESOPE standard operating procedures: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejcsup.2006.08.003
- InspECT registry (Eur J Cancer 2020): https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejca.2020.06.020

## Connected records

- cancers: [Cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma](https://onco.cc/cancers/cutaneous-scc/), [Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma](https://onco.cc/cancers/head-and-neck/), [Kaposi sarcoma](https://onco.cc/cancers/kaposi-sarcoma/), [Melanoma](https://onco.cc/cancers/melanoma/), [Stage III melanoma (after surgery)](https://onco.cc/cancers/stage-iii-melanoma/)
- fronts: [Devices & Physical Therapies](https://onco.cc/fronts/devices/), [Surgery & Interventional](https://onco.cc/fronts/surgery/)
- technologies: [Cytotoxic chemotherapy](https://onco.cc/technologies/cytotoxic-chemotherapy/), [Electrochemotherapy devices (Cliniporator)](https://onco.cc/technologies/electrochemotherapy-devices/), [Irreversible electroporation (NanoKnife)](https://onco.cc/technologies/irreversible-electroporation/)
- drugs: [Bleomycin](https://onco.cc/drugs/bleomycin/), [Cisplatin](https://onco.cc/drugs/cisplatin/)
- terms: [Immunogenic cell death](https://onco.cc/terms/immunogenic-cell-death/)
- trials: [Electrochemotherapy for Chest Wall Recurrence af Breast Cancer: Present Challenges and Future Prospects](https://onco.cc/trials/nct00744653/), [Electrochemotherapy for Recurrent Vulvar Cancer](https://onco.cc/trials/nct07443475/), [Electrochemotherapy With Carboplatinum Plus Bleomycin Versus Bleomycin Alone in Vulvar Cancer](https://onco.cc/trials/nct05395962/)
- key papers: [Electrochemotherapy in the treatment of cutaneous malignancy: Outcomes and subgroup analysis from the cumulative results from the pan-European International Network for Sharing Practice in Electrochemotherapy database for 2482 lesions in 987 patients (2008-2019)](https://onco.cc/key-papers/paper-clover-eur-j-cancer/)
- roadmaps: [Devices and physical therapies roadmap: heat and light → electric fields and focused sound → drug-releasing implants](https://onco.cc/roadmaps/devices-roadmap/)
- companies: [IGEA](https://onco.cc/companies/igea/)

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