Microwave Hyperthermia Antenna Array Phase Cycling
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing medical hyperthermia treatment systems using microwave antennas face challenges in minimizing unwanted heated zones outside the tumor region, leading to reduced energy application to tumors without damaging healthy tissue.
Innovation Solution
A treatment planning system that cycles through different antenna array settings with 'cold spots' to offset potential hotspots, using a computer program to model power deposition patterns and temperature distributions, and control the duration and sequence of these patterns based on tissue thermal models to minimize hotspots and maintain consistent temperatures.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Power
If microwave energy is focused through a phased array of antennas to increase power deposition at the tumor site, then the effectiveness of hyperthermia treatment is improved, but unwanted heated zones form outside the tumor region causing damage to healthy tissue
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies periodic action by cycling through multiple antenna array configurations in a time-varying manner. Each configuration produces a different power deposition pattern with hotspots and suppression regions in different locations. By periodically switching between these configurations, the system maintains effective heating at the tumor site while distributing and minimizing hotspots in surrounding healthy tissue over time.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements dynamics by making the antenna array configuration dynamic rather than static. The phase and amplitude values for each antenna are continuously adjusted according to a predetermined sequence, creating time-varying power deposition patterns. This dynamic approach allows the suppression regions to move and offset potential hotspots in different locations throughout the treatment period.
2Productivity
If the amount of microwave energy applied to the tumor is increased to improve treatment effectiveness, then the hyperthermia treatment efficacy is improved, but damage to surrounding healthy tissue increases
Solution Approach 1:
By periodically cycling through multiple antenna configurations with different hotspot and suppression region patterns, the system can apply higher total energy to the tumor site over time while distributing the thermal load on healthy tissue. The periodic switching ensures that no single healthy tissue region is continuously exposed to high temperatures, thereby maintaining treatment productivity while reducing harmful effects.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent maintains continuous useful action by ensuring that the tumor site receives consistent heating throughout the treatment period through the cycling of antenna configurations. While the specific pattern of energy deposition changes over time, the overall effect of sustained heating at the tumor site is maintained, preserving treatment effectiveness while managing healthy tissue exposure.
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 approach effectively reduces unwanted heated zones, allowing for more precise and controlled hyperthermia treatments by matching hotspot and suppression regions, thereby minimizing damage to healthy tissue and optimizing energy delivery to the tumor.
Implementation Method 1
Microwave energy may be focused, for example, through a phased array of the antennas. In this technique, the phase and amplitude of the microwave radiation supplied to each antenna is adjusted to create constructive interference at the tumor site among radiated waves from each antenna and destructive interference outside of the tumor site among the waves from each antenna.
Implementation Method 2
It is generally known to use microwave electromagnetic radiation for hyperthermia treatment. Microwaves provide a number of advantages including an ability to pass though some body structures such as the skull for treatment of the brain, and an ability to be focused to permit, for example, localized treatment of a tumor surrounded by tissue with reduced damage to the surrounding tissue.
Data Source
AI summary
A microwave hyperthermia treatment system employs a set of antennas individually controllable to provide different phase and amplitude outputs and controlled to cycle through different sets of phases and amplitudes over time to minimize the effect of hotspots formed by any given set of phases and amplitudes and creating limiting high temperatures outside of a desired treatment area.