Introduction:
The typical treatment strategy used for ovarian cancer is surgery followed by chemotherapy using cytostatic drugs, including cisplatin. Unfortunately, the majority of patients experience a relapse of the disease, the main reason for which is the development of cisplatin resistance. Due to this, new treatment strategies are being sought, including combination therapy, an example of which is the simultaneous treatment of cells with a cytostatic drug and hyperthermia. The aim of the study was to assess the occurrence of phenotypic and functional changes in ovarian cancer cells treated with cisplatin and/or moderate hyperthermia.

Material and methods:
Ovarian cancer cell lines SKOV-3 and TOV-21G were stimulated to apoptosis using cis-diammineplatinum(II) dichloride. Subsequently, the cells were subjected to hyperthermia by placing them in temperatures of 39°C, 40°C and a standard temperature of 37°C. Phenotypic changes within the cells were verified by fluorescent staining with acridine orange, ethidium bromide and DAPI (4′,6-diamidino-2-phenylindole). Functional changes related to in vitro cell migration were analyzed with the wound healing assay.

Results:
It was shown that the effect of cisplatin on the cells led to death by apoptosis, whereby the effect of potentiating the action of the cytostatic agent by the use of moderate hyperthermia was noticed. In addition, in the case of cells of the SKOV-3 line treated with the aforementioned agents, a statistically significant decrease in cell migration was observed in relation to the population of control cells.

Conclusions:
The obtained results indicate that the treatment of ovarian cancer cells with cisplatin and moderate hyperthermia leads to the appearance of phenotypic changes in these cells, characteristic of apoptotic processes. In addition, the application of both agents induces such changes in the cells that reduce cell migration, thereby reducing the metastatic potential of ovarian cancer cells.