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Above 57ºC all living tissue is almost immediately irreparably damaged and killed through processes called protein denaturization or coagulation necrosis (cellular tissue death).* With effective targeting and control, heat can be a valuable tool for destroying unwanted tissue.
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Not to be confused with high temperature ablation, which occurs at temperatures over 100ºC and kills tissue by burning or vaporization, but with associated risk. |
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Heat (also called hyperthermia or thermal therapy) is a common modality for destroying cancers of the liver, prostate, breast and other organs. Various types of energy sources are used, most commonly lasers, microwave, radiofrequency, electric, ultrasound. Depending on the application and the technology, the heat source may be extracorporeal (outside the body), extrastitial (outside the tumor) or interstitial (inside the tumor).
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Interstitial thermal therapy (“ITT”) heats and coagulates the tumor from the inside. The advantage is that the energy is applied directly to the tumor rather than passing through surrounding normal tissue. Also the energy deposition is more likely to be extended throughout the entire tumor.
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While highly effective in certain applications, use of ITT to treat brain tumors has been limited by inability to focus the energy exclusively and precisely on the tumor so as to avoid damage to surrounding normal brain tissue. This is complicated by the fact that many brain tumors are highly irregular in shape and are not easily accessible.
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Focused, laser-induced ITT, the AutoLITT® System, was developed by Monteris Medical to address these problems. |
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Brain Cancer
