Aminolevulinic acid (ALA): photodynamic detection and potential therapeutic applications

Aminolevulinic acid (ALA) is a heme precursor that may have potential applications for photodynamic detection and photodynamic therapy-based treatment of solid tumors in a variety of malignancies. ALA may have a role in other applications in surgical oncology based on its ability to discriminate neoplastic tissue from adjacent normal tissue. In this review, we provide a comprehensive summary of the published studies of ALA in non-cutaneous solid malignancies. (C) 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.