The next frontier to treat cancer: electricity

UC expert featured in Wall Street Journal article

The University of Cincinnati Cancer Center's Kyle Wang was featured in a Wall Street Journal article discussing research and advancements in using electricity as a treatment for cancer.

While pacemakers to keep heartbeats steady and electroconvulsive therapy to treat mental health disorders have been in use for decades, there is more of a focus on applying electricity to treat other diseases including cancer.

Wang, MD, Cancer Center physician researcher and associate professor in the Department of Radiation Oncology in UC's College of Medicine, studies the use of a device that delivers electricity through a cap worn on patient's heads to treat glioblastoma brain tumors. He is currently an investigator in a trial testing if wearing the device during initial treatment like chemotherapy or radiation will lead to better outcomes.

“Electricity, if it treats cancer, it should treat most kinds of cancer,” Wang told the Wall Street Journal. “The next 10 years are really going to be testing this.”

Read the Wall Street Journal article.

Read more about Wang's research.

Featured photo at top of patient with Optune device arrays being applied. Reproduced with permission from Novocure GmbH ©2021 Novocure GmbH – All rights reserved. Permission for global use was obtained from the patient.

Related Stories

1

Recent advances may speed time to endometriosis diagnosis

March 16, 2026

The average time to clinical diagnosis of endometriosis is nine years. Definitive diagnosis of the disease is difficult, and until recently, has relied on laparoscopic surgery. Now, as Medscape recently reported, novel clinical recommendations, advanced diagnostic tools and research into inflammation and immune responses, are bringing promise that women with endometriosis will find relief sooner and without surgery, according to experts, including Katie Burns, PhD, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine associate professor.

3

UC biologist talks about 'pearmageddon'

March 16, 2026

WLWT talks to UC biologist and Department Head Theresa Culley about invasive, nonnative Callery pear trees that are spreading across Ohio forests after they were introduced by landscapers more than 50 years ago.