The treatment approved by NICE combines a technique called photodynamic therapy (PDT) with a drug called Visudyne.

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Photodynamic therapy involves the injection of a light-sensitive medicine called verteporfin into a vein in the arm.

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In a statement, NICE said it had not yet issued guidance on the use of photodynamic therapy.

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Photodynamic therapy may not be the magic bullet for cancer, but even a little light relief is welcome.

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The prospects for photodynamic therapy, however, extend beyond the eyes and the skin.

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It also may overcome limitations of photodynamic therapy that has restricted acceptance and surgery that may not be an option if not all carcinogenic tissue can be removed.

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The Macular Disease Society (MDS) said that over the last two years nearly 1, 000 people had retained some sight - which they would almost certainly otherwise have lost - as a result of receiving photodynamic therapy.

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Although several light and laser therapies have FDA approval as medical devices to treat acne, no true photodynamic acne therapy, combining photosensitizer and light, has been approved.

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