Three-dimensional electromagnetic power deposition in tumors using interstitial antenna arrays

Computational modelling of microwave tumour ablations

Microwave tissue heating is being increasingly utilised in several medical applications, including focal tumour ablation, cardiac ablation, haemostasis and resection assistance. Computational modelling of microwave ablations is a precise and repeatable technique that can assist with microwave system design, treatment planning and procedural analysis. Advances in coupling temperature and water content to electrical and thermal properties, along with tissue contraction, have led to increasingly accurate computational models. Developments in experimental validation have led to broader acceptability and applicability of these newer models. This review will discuss the basic theory, current trends and future direction of computational modelling of microwave ablations.

Microwave tissue ablation: biophysics, technology, and applications

Microwave ablation is an emerging treatment option for many cancers, cardiac arrhythmias, and other medical conditions. During treatment, microwaves are applied directly to tissues to produce rapid temperature elevations sufficient to produce immediate coagulative necrosis. The engineering design criteria for each application differ, with individual consideration for factors such as desired ablation zone size, treatment duration, and procedural invasiveness. Recent technological developments in applicator cooling, power control, and system optimization for specific applications promise to increase the utilization of microwave ablation in the future. This article reviews the basic biophysics of microwave tissue heating, provides an overview of the design and operation of current equipment, and outlines areas for future research.

Interstitial microwave hyperthermia and brachytherapy for malignancies of the vulva and vagina. I: Design and testing of a modified intracavitary obturator

A vaginal obturator was fabricated to be used in combination with implanted catheters to provide microwave hyperthermia and brachytherapy to the vulva and vaginal wall. This site is difficult to heat or irradiate solely with interstitial techniques. The obturator was modified to provide grooves for the mounting of interstitial catheters into the outer wall and was matched with a template for circumferential implants. Power deposition tests were done using arrays of three microwave antenna designs: dipole (hA = hB = 3.9 cm), helical (3.9 cm coil, shorted), and modified dipole (1.0 cm helix on dipole tip) to test the performance of the obturator. The obturator and four non-obturator catheters were positioned in muscle-equivalent phantom. Two obturator catheters along with two free-standing catheters formed the obturator array. Four freestanding catheters formed the non-obturator array. Power deposition or specific absorption rate (SAR) measurements were made along the central axis, bisect, and diagonal transect of each array. SAR results showed that antennas in the obturator wall radiated as dipole theory predicts, although with less power density when compared to antennas in the same catheters spaced 1.8 cm from the obturator. This could be compensated for by increasing the power to the antennas in the obturator by 42%. Adjacent pairs of antennas were placed 90 degrees out of phase for 0.25 sec and rotated around the array. Phase rotation demonstrated that the central array SAR peaks could be lowered from 100% to 50% SAR, with dipole antennas thus resulting in lowered peak temperatures and the ability to heat larger volumes by improving the distribution of power. With helical antennas, there was 50% SAR at the array center when operated coherently without phase rotation. Three patients were treated with the obturator and a custom-made template using dipole antennas, and temperatures were measured in five obturator catheters. Therapeutic heating was measured in the catheters on the obturator between antennas in contact with the vaginal mucosa.

Evaluation and optimization of the electromagnetic performance of interstitial antennas for hyperthermia

Effective and realistic evaluation of the performance of interstitial antennas for microwave hyperthermia involves: (a) calculations of the radiation characteristics of these antennas, including those of multi-section designs, and (b) the development of 3-dimensional models of tumors and the computation of the power deposition patterns in these tumors due to their irradiation by an array of interstitial antennas. In this paper, we address both of these issues. Specifically, we developed numerical models for calculating the radiation characteristics of multi-section insulated antennas, and we utilized a 3-dimensional model based on a volume integral equation formulation for calculating the power deposition pattern in tumors. Numerical results were verified by comparing them with experimental data available in the literature. New numerical data are presented to illustrate the advantages of multi-section designs over uniformly-insulated interstitial antennas and to show the feasibility of using amplitude and phase steering capabilities to control the power deposition patterns of an interstitial antenna array. The role of each section in a multi-section antenna design in guiding versus radiating the electromagnetic energy and hence in controlling the power deposition pattern of multi-section antennas is also described.