Cited by 831Electromagnetic Fields and Biological EffectsMicrobial Inactivation MethodsMagnetic and Electromagnetic Effects

The DOI matches its Crossref record; 24 of the 25 references it cites were found in a registry or an index; 5 of the 18 sources its claims cite were checked for support.

Disruption of Cancer Cell Replication by Alternating Electric Fields

Open access

Abstract

Low-intensity, intermediate-frequency (100-300 kHz), alternating electric fields, delivered by means of insulated electrodes, were found to have a profound inhibitory effect on the growth rate of a variety of human and rodent tumor cell lines (Patricia C, U-118, U-87, H-1299, MDA231, PC3, B16F1, F-98, C-6, RG2, and CT-26) and malignant tumors in animals. This effect, shown to be nonthermal, selectively affects dividing cells while quiescent cells are left intact. These fields act in two modes: arrest of cell proliferation and destruction of cells while undergoing division. Both effects are demonstrated when such fields are applied for 24 h to cells undergoing mitosis that is oriented roughly along the field direction. The first mode of action is manifested by interference with the proper formation of the mitotic spindle, whereas the second results in rapid disintegration of the dividing cells. Both effects, which are frequency dependent, are consistent with the computed directional forces exerted by these specific fields on charges and dipoles within the dividing cells. In vivo treatment of tumors in C57BL/6 and BALB/c mice (B16F1 and CT-26 syngeneic tumor models, respectively), resulted in significant slowing of tumor growth and extensive destruction of tumor cells within 3-6 days. These findings demonstrate the potential applicability of the described electric fields as a novel therapeutic modality for malignant tumors.

Overview

Integrity signals

Registry

Crossref · 10.1158/0008-5472.can-04-0083

Cites

24 of 24 references verified0 citation errors · 0 not checkable

Statistics

Nothing to recompute.

Verification

Claims the paper makes

58 Own result · 17 Own interpretation · 7 No basis given · 4 No full text of the sources · 3 Sources not found · 3 Own method · 2 Partly supported · 1 Supported · 1 Supported so far · accuracy not yet measured

Show all 68 claims

  • Probably not a substantial claim. 4
  • It may state two separate claims as one. 23
  • The quote only partly states this claim. 1
28 of 28
  • The authors state this as an assumption.

    At the relatively low frequencies used (100 kHz), the complex dielectric constant of the particle is greater than that of the cytoplasm, so the Clausius-Mossotti factor is always positive.

    “K() in this case is always positive at the relatively low frequencies used (i.e., 100 kHz), assuming that at these frequencies, ‫ء⑀‬ p Ͼ ‫ء⑀‬ m .”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    Dividing cells contain highly polar, spatially oriented microtubules and develop a directional, hourglass-shaped morphology during cytokinesis.

    “One is that the latter contain highly polar, spatially oriented microtubules and that they develop a directional, hourglass-shaped cell morphology during the cytokinesis phase.”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    The force exerted by an electric field on a dipole is maximal when the dipole is oriented in the direction of the field.

    “With regard to the latter, the force exerted by the field is maximal when the dipole is oriented in the direction of the field.”
  • The authors state this as an assumption.

    The simplified description of cell morphology used in the finite element calculations adequately represents the cells.

    “The calculations of the electric field within the cells are based on finite element mesh (11), using a simplified description of the cell morphology (see Fig. 7).”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    The absence of local histopathological damage and observed acute effects in mice indicates no general side effects of TTFields.

    “In conclusion, we have demonstrated that TTFields inhibit both the proliferation of malignant cells in culture and the growth of tumors in mice while showing no general side effects or local histopathological damage.”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    The finite element simulations accurately represent the electric field distribution and forces inside real dividing cells.

    “To explain how TTFields cause orientation-dependent damage to dividing cancerous cells and disrupt the proper formation of the mitotic spindle, we modeled the forces exerted by TTFields on intracellular charges and polar particles using finite element simulations (see”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    The effects of TTFields on cultured cancer cell lines and mouse tumor models are predictive of effects in human cancer patients.

    “The highly specific effects of these fields on dividing cells, together with the relative ease of applying them, focusing them, and screening from them, make them an attractive candidate to serve as a novel treatment modality for cancer.”
7 of 7

Claims other papers make about this one

Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?

Self-check

Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.

Each contradiction between two passages listed here was confirmed by an independent check.

2 of 2

Citations

Cites

Show all 25 references

Research works printed but not linked: 1

  1. Pohl AH . Dielectrophoresis, Cambridge University Press Cambridge, UK 1978.

Cited by

Sorted by citations

Items 201–300 of 831

Metadata

Authors
Kirson, E. D., Gurvich, Z., Schneiderman, R., Dekel, E., Itzhaki, A., Wasserman, Y., Schatzberger, R., & Palti, Y.
Affiliations
  • 1Department of Biomedical Engineering, NovoCure Ltd., Haifa, Israel;
  • Technion – Israel Institute of Technology (IL)
  • Weizmann Institute of Science (IL)
  • Elisha Hospital (IL)
Venue
Cancer research
Published
2004-05-01
Volume
64
Issue
9
Pages
3288-3295
ISSN
  • 0008-5472 (ISSN-L)
  • 1538-7445
OpenAlex
W2098950184
Cited by
827
References
25
Citations by year
2026: 45 · 2025: 57 · 2024: 66 · 2023: 88 · 2022: 87 · 2021: 52 · 2020: 63 · 2019: 46 · 2018: 56 · 2017: 44 · 2016: 50 · 2015: 34 · 2014: 33 · 2013: 24 · 2012: 23
FWCI
1.48
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Cancer Research (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
Topics
  • Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Biophysics › Electromagnetic Fields and Biological Effects
  • Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Biotechnology › Microbial Inactivation Methods
  • Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Agronomy and Crop Science › Magnetic and Electromagnetic Effects
Keywords
AC electric field, tumor cell growth inhibition, non-thermal effects, mitotic spindle disruption, cell division arrest, frequency dependence, tumor growth in mice, B16F1 melanoma cells, CT26 cells, tumor cell quiescence
MeSH terms
Animals, Cell Division, Electric Stimulation Therapy, Humans, Neoplasms, Cell Line, Tumor, Mice, Rats

About these checks

Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.

A language model drew the claims from the paper on 2026-10-11, under version 3 of the claim definition (model deepseek-v4.1-flash, prompt extract-v3).

A second model labelled each claim on 2026-10-11 (model jev-1.13-20260917, definition revision gold-guideline-v0.2).

Cited sources are checked with a language model’s help (gpt-6-sol).

Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.

Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.

What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›

Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review