Exposure to reduced oxygenation following radiation exposure enhances the survival of prostate cancer cells in vitro: implications for radiation therapy delivery

Abstract

Introduction: Hypoxia is a common feature of prostate tumours; hypoxic cells are more radioresistance compared to oxygenated cells. Hypoxic radioresistance has also been shown to be related to the duration of hypoxia prior to irradiation; as such treatments methods of targeting hypoxia before irradiation as a way of treating cancer were investigated. To date the effect of post-irradiation hypoxia on radioresistance and the cellular response to irradiation has been poorly studied. We propose that prostate cancer cells that are hypoxic after irradiation have a survival advantage over those that are fully oxygenated.