Table 1. Comparison between the Significant Features of Ultraviolet and near-Infrared Light Irradiations in Photodynamic and Photothermal Therapies.

	UV stimulation	NIR stimulation
wavelength range (nm)	200–400	650–900
energy	more energetic	less energetic
photochemical reactions	more effective	less effective
penetration	poor body tissue penetration (<1 mm)	deep body tissue penetration (1–4 mm)
effectiveness against deep tumors	not effective against deep tumors	effective against deep tumors
	effective against superficial tumors
applicability in PTT and PDT	can be transformed into heat (for PTT) or reactive oxygen species (for PDT)	can be transformed into heat (for PTT) or reactive oxygen species (for PDT)
safety	hazardous to healthy tissues (could be absorbed by lipids and hemoglobin)	safer to healthy tissues