Therapeutic System for Interstitial Laser and Brachytherapy
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current radiation therapy techniques for treating tumors are invasive and require additional components like catheters or balloons to maintain a cavity, which complicates the delivery of therapeutic energy and increases patient discomfort and procedural complexity.
Innovation Solution
A therapeutic system that integrates components for both interstitial laser therapy and brachytherapy, allowing for controlled delivery of laser and x-ray energy without the need for additional structures like catheters or balloons, enabling precise and minimally invasive treatment by using an energy probe, sensing probe, and computer-controlled energy sources.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional radiation therapy techniques are used to treat tumors, then therapeutic energy can be delivered to the tissue abnormality, but invasive steps beyond minimally invasive techniques are required and additional components like catheters or balloons must be used to maintain a cavity
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines interstitial laser therapy and brachytherapy into a single integrated system that can perform both treatments through the same percutaneous access point. The energy probe can deliver either laser energy or x-ray energy without requiring separate catheters or balloons, thereby reducing device complexity while maintaining treatment effectiveness.
Solution Approach 2:
The energy probe is designed as a universal device that can deliver multiple types of therapeutic energy (laser and x-ray) through a single structure. This multi-functional probe eliminates the need for separate catheters or balloons that would be required for different treatment modalities, simplifying the overall procedure.
2Reliability
If additional percutaneous components like catheters or balloons are used to maintain a cavity during treatment, then radiation delivery is enabled, but patient discomfort increases and procedural complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the cavity-maintenance function from the treatment system by eliminating the need for balloons or catheters. The energy probe itself is designed to deliver therapeutic energy directly without requiring an inflated cavity, thereby reducing patient discomfort while maintaining the ability to deliver radiation effectively.
3Reliability
If interstitial laser therapy is followed or preceded by chemotherapy or radiation therapy using conventional techniques, then comprehensive treatment is achieved, but additional invasive steps beyond minimally invasive techniques are required
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges interstitial laser therapy and brachytherapy into a single integrated system that can perform both treatments through the same percutaneous access point. This combination allows comprehensive treatment coverage while minimizing the number of percutaneous components needed, as the same energy probe can deliver either laser energy or x-ray energy.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This system allows for accurate and minimally invasive delivery of therapeutic energy to tumors, reducing patient discomfort, simplifying procedures, and enhancing treatment effectiveness by eliminating the need for additional structures, thus improving the precision and efficiency of tumor treatment.
Implementation Method 1
a laser source for generating ablative laser energy to be applied to the tissue abnormality
Implementation Method 2
tissue abnormalities such as breast cancer and other cancers or tumors detected early in development can be effectively treated or destroyed using an ablative agent such as laser energy
Implementation Method 3
an x-ray energy source and an optical fiber configured to be connected to the x-ray energy source and to be removably insertable in the energy probe
Implementation Method 4
application of x-ray energy to a tissue abnormality
Implementation Method 5
thermal probes including thermistors for detecting the temperature of tissue adjacent to tissue abnormalities
Data Source
AI summary
A therapeutic energy system for performing interstitial laser therapy and brachytherapy includes two categories of components. The first category includes components usable to perform both interstitial laser therapy and brachytherapy. The second category of components includes components usable to perform either interstitial laser therapy or brachytherapy, but not both. The components co-act to apply therapeutic energy to tissue. The components of the first system include components inserted percutaneously into the tissue, such that interstitial laser therapy and brachytherapy can be performed sequentially without removing and re-inserting percutaneous components. Components of the second category include components not requiring additional puncturing of the skin of a patient, such that removing and inserting components of the second category from a patient is done easily and painlessly. An energy probe component does not maintain a cavity around the tumor mass. Surgical excision of tissue can be performed coincident to therapeutic energy treatment as disclosed.