The Use of Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy to Treat Necrosis and Open Wounds due to Ionizing Radiation

Radiation is invaluable for the treatment of tumors but causes detrimental effects on surrounding healthy tissue because ionizing radiation is nonspecific to its target. Wounds may develop from radiation therapy for cancers growing close to or on the skin, like melanoma. Clinically approved approaches are needed to regenerate tissue and close wounds after ionizing radiation treatment. Surgical intervention is commonly performed for wound closure post-radiation, but it has a high chance of developing infection. Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (HBOT) is a treatment currently being used for patients with ulcers, burns, infections, crush injuries, and more, but requires further research to confirm its reliability on radiation induced wounds. HBOT, unlike surgical intervention post-radiation, mitigates infection and the disfiguring of skin. This case study was on a patient who underwent HBOT for a wound developed from radiation after a successful treatment of melanoma. The patient suffered from sequela necrosis and open wound from the radiation that measured 3cm by 2cm with 30% slough. They were presented to the Ocala Infectious Disease and Wound Center xi and were prescribed 40 sessions of continuous 90-minute HBOTs at 2.0 ATA (atmospheres absolute) for a duration of 10 weeks. The size of their wound and percent slough was measured on a weekly basis to determine the effects of HBOT. A successful treatment of HBOT would be represented by a decrease in wound size and decrease in percent slough. Thus, HBOT may offer a safer and reliable alternative to radiation induced wound closure.