When activated by the laser's light energy, the drug creates a toxic form of oxygen that destroys the cancerous cells with minimal damage to surrounding healthy cells. When treating lung cancer, additional side effects following the procedure could include possible inflammation at the treatment site causing varying degrees of shortness of breath and coughing. In medical terminology, the pending late-stage lung cancer treatment is for the reduction of obstruction and palliation of symptoms in patients with completely or partially obstructing endobronchial nonsmall cell lung cancer. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration's approval of early stage lung cancer is for the treatment of microinvasive endobronchial non-small cell lung cancer in patients for whom surgery and radiotherapy are not indicated. Laserscope believes that the potential of being able to treat atherosclerosis effectively and safely with a drug-laser combination would represent a major breakthrough in the treatment of cardiovascular disease.
Atherosclerosis is the narrowing of the arteries caused by plaque accumulation.
In coronary arteries, it is a primary cause of heart attacks. In peripheral vessels, the resulting disease can cause the loss of limbs, failure of vital organs, and strokes. According to the American Heart Association, coronary heart disease is the single leading cause of death in America today. It estimates that more than 13 million people in the United States alone have some form of coronary heart disease, leading to nearly 500,000 deaths each year. Laserscope is a pioneer in the development of PDT laser systems and devices, and the leading medical laser company in the emerging PDT market.