Laser therapy is the use of a highly focused beam of light to treat diseases, including cancer. Lasers can be used to treat cancers on the surface of the skin or to shrink or destroy tumours in other parts of the body.

Laser therapy may be used to:

• Treat precancerous or cancerous growths on the surface of the body, such as skin cancers, and in the lining of internal organs.
• Treat cancers, such as cervical, penile, vaginal, vulvar, and non-small cell lung cancer, in an early stage.
• Destroy a tumour that is blocking the trachea, esophagus, stomach, or colon.

Laser therapy may be done through an endoscope, which is a thin flexible lighted tube used to look inside the body. The laser is generated from optical fibres inside the endoscope. The laser cuts out or destroys the tumours.

Laser therapy may be used alone or with other treatments, such as surgery, radiation, or chemotherapy.