Application of radiosensitizers in oncotherapy

Radiotherapy is one of the important methods for treating malignant tumors. However, due to the limitation of normal tissue tolerance dose, it is impossible to give a sufficient irradiation dose to the tumor, which causes treatment failure. Therefore, how to improve the sensitivity of the tumor to radiation is a prominent problem in tumor radiotherapy. Radiosensitizers can enhance the sensitivity of tumor radiotherapy and improve the efficacy of radiotherapy, through accelerating DNA damage, producing free radicals and regulating key molecular targets. This paper summarized the applications of radiosensitizers in radiotherapy, the development status of radiosensitizers and research progresses in the related fields.Furthermore, the possible mechanisms of how radiosensitizers enhance the sensitivity of tumors were also briefly reviewed. This review will elucidate the detailed molecular mechanisms of radiosensitization regulation, promote the development of radiosensitizers, and facilitate the development of new strategies to improve radiotherapy efficiency. Key words: Radiotherapy; Radiosensitizer; Target