Historical foundations
The basics and the therapeutic approach of photodynamic therapy have existed for a long time. The first experiments with light-sensitive substances and light irradiation were already carried out around 1900. A pharmacologist from Munich began at this early time to describe treatment successes with light.
However, it took almost 90 years before photodynamic therapy was used correctly. In dermatology, photodynamic therapy was then used for the first time as a test method in 1990. In this case, however, no approved drug was applied to the skin to sensitize the skin, but rather a chemical that was incorporated into the cream. It took another 15 years before photodynamic therapy was further developed to such an extent that it could be firmly integrated into the therapeutic principles of dermatology.
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