Bpd-Ma Mediated PDT of Spinal Bone Metastases: Determining PDT Threshold Values

Spinal bone metastases often present as a diffuse combination of osteolytic and osteoblastic disease. Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is a minimally invasive therapy that has been shown to locally ablate cancer cells within the bony spine. To optimize patient-specific treatment protocols and ensure safety of critical neural structures, the responsivities of the heterogenous tissues to PDT must be known. This work derives a PDT threshold value for the spinal cord using a benzoporphyrin derivative monoacid (BPD-MA) photosensitizer.