Thermal performance of Fe-Cr-Nb-B systems in magnetic hyperthermia

Abstract

In magnetic hyperthermia, the temperature control within the malignant tissues is an important step to increase the efficiency of the therapy. A temperature analysis is a good method to improve the heating process of the magnetic particles injected within tissues. This paper analyzes the thermal effects induced within malignant tissues by the magnetic systems like: magnetite and Fe-Cr-Nb-B when an external time-dependent magnetic field is applied. The heat generation by Néel and Brown relaxations was modeled using the thermal and magnetic properties of the Fe-Cr-Nb-B particles experimentally determined. A lognormal particle size distribution was considered for these magnetic systems with dimensions from 5 nm to 30 nm. After their injection at the center of the tumor, according to the solution of the transient convection-diffusion equation in a porous medium, the mass concentration of the particles within ferrofluid has a spatial and temporal distribution. The ferrofluid injection process was modeled using the Brinkman equations. The ferrofluid injection rate during the injection process influences significantly the spatial distribution of the particle concentration and temperature field within tumor. Higher values of the ferrofluid flow rate determine a strong convection of the particles to the tumor center. As a consequence, the temperature gradients within tumor are smaller. The performance in Magnetic Hyperthermia of Fe-Cr-Nb-B magnetic systems is discussed.