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Modality
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Preclinical evidence
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Clinical evidence for treating tumors
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Assessment
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Tumor treating fields (TTFields): alternating electric fields delivered through skin arrays
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Laboratory and animal work supports interference with cancer cell division.
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In a randomized glioblastoma trial, median overall survival was 20.9 months with TTFields plus temozolomide versus 16.0 months with temozolomide alone. In metastatic non-small-cell lung cancer, the LUNAR trial reported 13.2 versus 9.9 months with TTFields added to standard therapy. The FDA also approved TTFields with gemcitabine and nab-paclitaxel for locally advanced pancreatic cancer in February 2026. PubMed
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Established evidence for specific devices, combinations, and indications.
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Electrochemotherapy: brief electric pulses combined with a cancer drug, commonly bleomycin
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Pulses increase drug entry into treated tumor tissue.
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Numerous clinical studies concern skin cancers and cutaneous metastases. A melanoma meta-analysis reported a 77% overall local response rate. That is a response of treated lesions, not a 77% cure rate or proof of improved overall survival. PubMed
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Supported local treatment, particularly for accessible lesions; evidence varies by tumor and setting.
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Irreversible electroporation (IRE): invasive, high voltage pulsed electric fields
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Pulses disrupt cell membranes to ablate tissue.
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Used and studied for selected pancreatic tumors, including prospective studies and a randomized phase 2 comparison with ablative radiotherapy. Its effect on long term survival remains less certain than its ability to produce local ablation. PubMed
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Specialist local ablation procedure; not equivalent to surface stimulation.
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Amplitude modulated radiofrequency fields: tumor specific modulation delivered through a mouthpiece
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Cell and mouse hepatocellular carcinoma studies reported growth inhibition and investigated calcium channel signaling.
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An open label study of 41 patients with advanced liver cancer reported three partial responses, one near complete response, and stable disease lasting over six months in 14 patients. Without a randomized control group, the size of any treatment benefit is uncertain. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.
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Promising early human signal; efficacy needs controlled confirmation.
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Magnetic nanoparticle hyperthermia: injected particles heated by an alternating magnetic field
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Produces targeted heating in experimental tumors.
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Studied with radiotherapy in patients with recurrent glioblastoma. The combination and study design do not isolate a survival benefit from the magnetic treatment itself. PubMed
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Specialized early clinical approach.
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PEMF: pulsed electromagnetic fields
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A meta-analysis of in vitroexperiments found reduced viability in some epithelial cancer cell models, with differing results across cell types. Field settings vary considerably among studies. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.
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Clinical studies have examined supportive outcomes such as radiation related skin injury. The evidence cited here does not establish PEMF as a treatment that shrinks tumors or extends survival. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.
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Preclinical antitumor research; no established clinical tumor treatment benefit.
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tDCS: transcranial direct current stimulation
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Brain stimulation may alter neural activity, but that alone does not demonstrate an effect on tumor cells.
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Trials and reviews chiefly address cancer related pain and other symptoms. A review of randomized trials found a potential pain benefit in certain settings; it did not establish tumor shrinkage or improved survival. PubMed
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Supportive care research, not an established anticancer treatment.
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What the data support: Specific electrical field treatments can affect cancer, but the evidence depends on the device and how it is used. Randomized trials support tumor treating fields added to standard therapy for certain cancers. Electrochemotherapy can produce responses in treated skin tumors, while irreversible electroporation can locally ablate selected tumors. Early studies of amplitude modulated radiofrequency fields are encouraging but need controlled confirmation. PEMF has laboratory anticancer findings; tDCS has mainly been studied for cancer symptoms. Neither has established evidence of shrinking tumors or extending survival. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.