Treating tumors with electric field is an interdisciplinary integrated and comprehensive research which applies electro-technology to tumor treatment.This therapy has the characteristics of safe,practical to its users and the parameters are easily to be controlled,which has attracted considerable attention in recent years.The main types of electric field in current research or application are pulsed electric field and direct current electric field.Both of the types can change the environment where tumors grow with different mechanisms,and the tumors would be killed through their pathological changes.Alternating electric field in intermediate frequency is a new type of tumor treating field,which has a promising application prospect.This article reviews the international and domestic research progress of the effects and mechanisms of the three kinds of electric fields used in the treatment of tumors.