Hyperbaric oxygen treatment helps cancer patients reclaim normal life after radiation side effects

Medical Xpress / University of Gothenburg / eClinicalMedicine ^ | April 23, 2025 | Nicklas Oscarsson et al

[ConservativeMind]

Hyperbaric oxygen treatment provides long-term relief for patients suffering from late radiation-induced injuries after treatment of cancer in the lower abdominal area. Five years after hyperbaric oxygen therapy, the positive effects remain.

Radiation therapy is a component of many cancer treatments in organs such as the prostate, colon, ovaries and cervix. While tumor cells are destroyed, 5%–10% of patients experience severe side effects due to healthy tissue being affected by the radiation therapy.

Symptoms may include urinary incontinence, bleeding and severe pain in the lower abdomen that becomes both physically and socially disabling. These problems can occur several years after radiation therapy and cause chronic and increasing discomfort.

Researchers have previously shown that patients experience significantly less discomfort after hyperbaric oxygen treatment.

Initially, all participants had severe symptoms. The group that was randomly assigned to hyperbaric oxygen treatment fared significantly better than the control group in terms of incontinence, bleeding and pain. The positive effects were sustained over the five-year follow-up period.

Nicklas Oscarssonsays, "Patients who respond to treatment go from being very distressed by their symptoms and restricted, to being able to live a fully normal life. Now we know that this pronounced improvement lasts for at least five years. The treatment can therefore lead to the healing of an otherwise chronic injury."

The effects achieved are due to cells sensing and adapting to high oxygen levels. The increased levels of oxygen provided in a hyperbaric chamber increase vascular growth and stop chronic inflammation, reducing severe side effects.

For the oxygen treatments, participants spent 90 minutes per day in a hyperbaric chamber on 30–40 occasions. The pressure corresponded to that prevailing 14 meters below the surface of the water. The control group received the usual treatment, which normally includes medication and physiotherapy, for example.

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TOPICS: Health/Medicine
KEYWORDS: 02; cancer; oxygen; radiation; treatment

[ConservativeMind]

These benefits (living “a fully normal life”) came from the following:

“For the oxygen treatments, participants spent 90 minutes per day in a hyperbaric chamber on 30–40 occasions.”

Many cities have this therapy available.

[ConservativeMind]

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[Orosius]

I had hyperbaric oxygen treatments for a severe infection and was able to avoid an amputation because of it. It works.

[catnipman]

so were you treated in a REAL hyperbaric oxygen chamber that dives to 45 feet and was pressurized with pure oxygen, or was it one of the balloon ones that go to 14 feet and are pressurized with ordinary air and you breath oxygen through a mask in the chamber ... there’s a YUGE difference (and cost) ...

[spel_grammer_an_punct_polise]

I wish that the medical industry would try to reverse the effects of chemo treatments. I had rads and chemo in 2017 and my whole system is messed up.

Fingernails break if I look at them too long. Facial, ears and neck skin peels every few days no matter which salve or ointment I put on my face.

Thus far, the medical crime syndicate calls it a slight inconvenience.

[dennisw]

Real hyperbaric is called hard shell. My dad got it for an infected toe it worked. Golfers were there who had diabetes and did not want more toes cut off.

[Orosius]

It was a tank like a submarine and I breathed inside a hood into which the oxygen was pumped. It took about 15 minutes to pressurize the chamber.

All I know is that it cured an infected wound that had persisted for a year despite heavy antibiotics.

[catnipman]

thanks for your reply!