Therapeutic effect of combined hyperbaric oxygen and radiation therapy for single brain metastasis and its influence on osteopontin and MMP-9.

The present study aimed to investigate the therapeutic effect of combined hyperbaric oxygen and radiation therapy for the treatment of single brain metastasis (SBM), as well as its influence on osteopontin (OPN) and matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9). A total of 86 patients with SBM were admitted to Hongqi Hospital from January 2013 to January 2016 and those included within the study were randomly divided into two groups. The control group was only treated with whole brain radiotherapy, while the observation group was treated with hyperbaric oxygenation combined with whole brain radiotherapy. OPN and MMP-9 expression was measured in each group by ELISA and the results prior to and following treatment were compared. The total effective rate (patients with complete remission, partial remission or stabilized lesions) in the observation group (95.3%) was significantly increased compared with the control group (67.4%). However, the OPN and MMP-9 protein levels observed in the observation group were significantly reduced compared with the control group (P<0.05). In addition, the quality of life and the incidence of adverse reactions in the observation group were significantly improved compared with the control group (P<0.05). For patients with SBM, hyperbaric oxygenation combined with radiotherapy may improve the efficiency of treatment and should be considered for further investigation and use within a clinical setting.