Other local treatment methods

Beyond surgery, radiation, and drug-based treatment, oncology also uses a group of established local (physical) methods that destroy tumor tissue directly — with heat, extreme cold, light, or electric pulses. They include hyperthermia, photodynamic therapy, tumor ablation (radiofrequency ablation and cryoablation), and electrochemotherapy. Because these techniques act on a precisely defined area, they are used mainly for small, superficial, or well-localized lesions, often when surgery is not possible, and usually alongside other treatments rather than instead of them. Their availability varies between centers, and for some uses it is not yet clear whether they help people live longer — many applications are still being evaluated in clinical trials.