Abstract
BackgroundHyperthermia is considered one of the new therapeutic modalities for cancer treatment and is based on the difference in thermal sensitivity between healthy tissues and tumors. During hyperthermia treatment, the temperature of the tumor is raised to 40–45°C for a definite period resulting in the destruction of cancer cells. This paper investigates design, modeling and simulation of a new non-invasive hyperthermia applicator system capable of effectively heating deep seated as well as superficial brain tumors using inexpensive, simple, and easy to fabricate components without harming surrounding healthy brain tissues.MethodsThe proposed hyperthermia applicator system is composed of an air filled partial half ellipsoidal chamber, a patch antenna, and a head model with an embedded tumor at an arbitrary location. The irradiating antenna is placed at one of the foci of the hyperthermia chamber while the center of the brain tumor is placed at the other focus. The finite difference time domain (FDTD) method is used to compute both the SAR patterns and the temperature distribution in three different head models due to two different patch antennas at a frequency of 915 MHz.ResultsThe obtained results suggest that by using the proposed noninvasive hyperthermia system it is feasible to achieve sufficient and focused energy deposition and temperature rise to therapeutic values in deep seated as well as superficial brain tumors without harming surrounding healthy tissue.ConclusionsThe proposed noninvasive hyperthermia system proved suitable for raising the temperature in tumors embedded in the brain to therapeutic values by carefully selecting the systems components. The operator of the system only needs to place the center of the brain tumor at a pre-specified location and excite the antenna at a single frequency of 915 MHz. Our study may provide a basis for a clinical applicator prototype capable of heating brain tumors.
Highlights
Hyperthermia is considered one of the new therapeutic modalities for cancer treatment and is based on the difference in thermal sensitivity between healthy tissues and tumors
This observation is consistent with those used to assess specific absorption rate (SAR) values deposited in the head due to the exposure to microwave frequencies emanating from cellular phones [34] and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) equipment [35]
SAR patterns computed in the realistic 3D head model using any of the two antenna configurations showed a distorted SAR distribution and hot spots in the ventricles as well as in the brain tumor compared to those observed in the simple head models
Summary
Hyperthermia is considered one of the new therapeutic modalities for cancer treatment and is based on the difference in thermal sensitivity between healthy tissues and tumors. The temperature of the tumor is raised to 40–45°C for a definite period resulting in the destruction of cancer cells. This paper investigates design, modeling and simulation of a new non-invasive hyperthermia applicator system capable of effectively heating deep seated as well as superficial brain tumors using inexpensive, simple, and easy to fabricate components without harming surrounding healthy brain tissues. The quality and the effectiveness of hyperthermia treatment is highly dependent on the ability to deposit power and to localize the temperature distribution in the tumor region without harming the surrounding normal tissues. Research should be focused on raising the quality of hyperthermia devices used for effective and localized cancer treatment of deeply seated brain tumors
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