title: How radiotherapy was historically used to treat pneumonia: could it be useful today?
abstract: X-ray therapy was used to treat pneumonia during the first half of the 20th century. Fifteen studies report that approximately 700 cases of bacterial (lobar and bronchopneumonia), sulfanilamide non-responsive, interstitial, and atypical pneumonia were effectively treated by low doses of X-rays, leading to disease resolution, based on clinical symptoms, objective disease biomarkers, and mortality incidence. The capacity of the X-ray treatment to reduce mortality was similar to serum therapy and sulfonamide treatment during the same time period. Studies with four experimental animal models (i.e., mice, guinea pig, cat, and dog) with bacterial and viral pneumonia supported the clinical findings. The mechanism by which the X-ray treatment acts upon pneumonia involves the induction of an anti-inflammatory phenotype that leads to a rapid reversal of clinical symptoms, facilitating disease resolution. The capacity of low doses of X-rays to suppress inflammatory responses is a significant new concept with widespread biomedical and therapeutic applications.
authors.affiliation: Department of Public Health, Environmental Health Sciences, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, Massachusetts.
authors.forename: Edward J
authors.initials: EJ
authors.lastname: Calabrese
authors.affiliation: Department of Public Health, Environmental Health Sciences, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, Massachusetts.
authors.forename: Gaurav
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Dhawan
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002415:Cats; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D004285:Dogs; D004307:Dose-Response Relationship, Radiation; D006168:Guinea Pigs; D006801:Humans; D017563:Lung Diseases, Interstitial / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000532:radiotherapy*; D051379:Mice; D018410:Pneumonia, Bacterial / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000532:radiotherapy*; D011024:Pneumonia, Viral / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000532:radiotherapy*; D013449:Sulfonamides / Q000627:therapeutic use; D016019:Survival Analysis; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014964:X-Ray Therapy / Q000379:methods* / Q000639:trends
chemical_list: D013449:Sulfonamides
keywords: X-rays; anti-inflammation; hormesis; inflammation; pneumonia; radiotherapy