Beyond Local Anesthesia: The Emerging Roles of Procaine and Lidocaine in Neural Regulation, Inflammation, and Cancer Biology

Abstract Neural Therapy with Procaine and Lidocaine in Regulatory Medicine: Potential Applications in Oncology Neural therapy using procaine and lidocaine is a promising approach in regulatory medicine and is attracting growing interest in oncology. By influencing the autonomic nervous system (ANS) and supporting anti-inflammatory, epigenetic, and immunomodulatory effects, these local anesthetics may also act on the tumor microenvironment and could have a role in cancer prevention and treatment. Procaine has demonstrated antioxidant, epigenetic, and anti-inflammatory effects that may support immune function and inhibit tumor growth. Lidocaine complements these properties by inhibiting the NF-κB signaling pathway, reducing pro-inflammatory cytokine production, and enhancing T-cell activity, thereby potentially contributing to improved antitumor immune responses. Given their favorable tolerability, relatively low cost, and broad range of potential applications, procaine and lidocaine may represent valuable complementary components of multimodal cancer treatment strategies. However, further well-designed clinical studies are required to evaluate their efficacy in oncology systematically and more clearly define their therapeutic potential.