Porous silicon in photodynamic and photothermal therapy

Abstract

Porous silicon has been under evaluation as both a photosensitizer and a photothermal agent against cancer. Photodynamic therapy approaches exploit the ability of mesoporous silicon to generate reactive oxygen species under illumination; photothermal therapy exploits its ability to absorb near-infrared light and the low thermal conductivity. Both the in vitro and in vivo data acquired to date are reviewed.