The short answer
Hyperthermia heats body tissue to high temperatures to damage and kill cancer cells with little harm to normal tissue. It is almost always used with other treatments such as radiation or chemotherapy. It is not widely available and is often studied in clinical trials.
Hyperthermia heats body tissue to as high as 113 degrees Fahrenheit to damage and kill cancer cells.
It is almost always used along with other treatments such as radiation therapy and chemotherapy.
It can treat small areas (local), large areas (regional), or the whole body.
It is not widely available and requires special equipment and expertise.
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The full explanation.
The simple version
Hyperthermia is a treatment in which body tissue is heated to as high as 113 degrees Fahrenheit. The heat damages and kills cancer cells, with little or no harm to normal tissue. It is also called thermal therapy, thermal ablation, or thermotherapy.
Different techniques create the heat. They include probes that make energy from microwaves or radio waves, lasers, and ultrasound. Heated fluids can also be pumped into the body, which is called perfusion. Or the body can be placed in a heated chamber or wrapped in heated blankets.
Hyperthermia uses heat to damage cancer cells while trying to spare normal tissue.
How it treats cancer
Hyperthermia is almost always used with other cancer treatments. Many clinical trials have looked at hyperthermia combined with radiation therapy and chemotherapy. It helps shrink tumors, and it may make those treatments better at killing cancer cells.
During treatment, the doctor numbs the area and inserts small probes with tiny thermometers into the tumor. The thermometers let the doctor watch the temperature of the tumor and nearby tissue closely. Imaging, such as CT scans, may be used to check that the probes are in the right place.
The three main types
Hyperthermia can treat small areas, large areas, or the entire body.
Local hyperthermia applies heat to a small area. The type depends on where the tumor is:
- External hyperthermia treats tumors on or just below the skin. Devices are placed around or near the area.
- Intraluminal or endocavitary hyperthermia treats tumors within or near body cavities, such as the esophagus or rectum. Probes are placed inside the cavity.
- Interstitial hyperthermia treats tumors deep in the body, such as in the brain. Probes or needles are placed while you are under anesthesia. Radiofrequency ablation is one type. It uses radio waves to heat and kill cancer cells.
Regional hyperthermia applies heat to large areas, such as a cavity, an organ, or a limb. One technique is deep tissue heating. Another is regional perfusion. Some of your blood is removed, heated, and pumped back into a limb or organ, often with chemotherapy. A third is continuous hyperthermic peritoneal perfusion, where heated chemotherapy flows through the abdomen during surgery.
Whole-body hyperthermia treats cancer that has spread throughout the body. You are placed in a thermal chamber, or wrapped in hot water blankets. That raises your body temperature for short periods.
Benefits and drawbacks
The main benefit of hyperthermia is that it can help other cancer treatments work better. Chemotherapy and radiation therapy are the usual partners.
There are drawbacks too. Hyperthermia needs special equipment and expertise. It is not widely available. It is also not clear whether it helps people live longer.
Side effects and where to get it
Most healthy tissue is not damaged during hyperthermia if the temperature stays under 111 degrees Fahrenheit. But different tissues heat unevenly, so some spots get hotter than others. That can cause burns, blisters, discomfort, or pain.
Perfusion techniques can cause swelling, blood clots, bleeding, and other damage to normal tissue in the treated area. Most of these improve after treatment. Diarrhea, nausea, and vomiting are common after whole-body hyperthermia. Less often, it can cause more serious heart and blood vessel problems.
Only a small number of hospitals and cancer centers have the doctors and machines that hyperthermia needs. In clinical trials, doctors are studying how well it works for different cancers, and how to improve the way it is delivered.
Because hyperthermia is specialized and still being studied, it is often available mainly through certain centers and clinical trials.
When to get help sooner
- Call 911 or go to an emergency department if you struggle for breath, your chest hurts, or your heart races and will not settle after a perfusion or whole-body treatment. Bleeding that will not stop belongs here as well.
- Call your care team the same day if the heated skin blisters, breaks open, or hurts more each hour instead of less. A treated arm or leg that swells and reddens also needs looking at that day.
- Call your care team within a day or two if diarrhea, nausea, or vomiting after whole-body hyperthermia keeps you from drinking enough.
Source: National Cancer Institute: hyperthermia to treat cancer.
Words to know
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Common questions
What is hyperthermia treatment?
Hyperthermia is a type of treatment in which body tissue is heated to as high as 113 degrees Fahrenheit to help damage and kill cancer cells with little or no harm to normal tissue. It is also called thermal therapy, thermal ablation, or thermotherapy.
How does hyperthermia treat cancer?
Hyperthermia is almost always used with other forms of cancer treatment. Many clinical trials have shown that when it is used with treatments such as radiation therapy and chemotherapy, it helps shrink tumors and may make it easier to kill cancer cells.
What are the types of hyperthermia?
Hyperthermia can be local (heating a small area, such as a tumor on or near the skin, in a body cavity, or deep in the body), regional (heating a large area such as an organ or limb), or whole-body (raising the body's temperature to treat cancer that has spread).
How is hyperthermia given?
During treatment, the doctor numbs the area and inserts small probes with tiny thermometers into the tumor. The thermometers let the doctor watch the temperature of the tumor and nearby tissue closely. Imaging such as CT scans may be used to make sure the probes are in the right place.
What are the benefits and drawbacks?
Hyperthermia can help other treatments, such as chemotherapy and radiation therapy, work better. But it requires special equipment and expertise, is not widely available, and it is not clear whether it helps people live longer.
What side effects can hyperthermia cause?
Most healthy tissue is not damaged if the temperature stays under 111 degrees Fahrenheit, but higher temperatures in certain spots can cause burns, blisters, discomfort, or pain. Some techniques can cause swelling, blood clots, or bleeding, and whole-body hyperthermia can cause diarrhea, nausea, and vomiting. Most side effects improve after treatment.
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Sources last checked: 2026-08-11 what this meansLast updated: 2026-08-11Next planned review: 2027-01-14
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How this page was created
Cancer Explained does not originate medical claims. Every page restates guidance already published by the National Cancer Institute, the CDC, the USPSTF and the FDA, in plain language, with the source cited so you can check the original yourself. AI does the translating and organizing; automated checks test claims, citations, clarity and safety before anything publishes. We do not employ clinicians and do not intend to — our work is translation and navigation, not clinical judgment. Nothing here is personal medical advice, and no page can account for your particular situation.
Editorial status: Source checked — This page was written with AI assistance and checked line by line against the sources listed on it. That confirms the sources support what the page says. It is not a medical review, and it does not confirm the page is complete or right for your situation.
Human medical review: not completed. Pages here are not signed off by a clinician before they publish. That is not an oversight we are quietly working around: we restate published guidance and cite it, so the authority belongs to the source rather than to us, and every page names where its claims come from — you can verify us instead of trusting us. Where a volunteer clinician has reviewed a page, their name and credentials appear on it; where no name appears, no clinician has checked it. We are glad to have reviewers and are recruiting them, and we do not hold pages back waiting for one. Use this site to understand your situation and to ask better questions of the people treating you.
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