Pulsed Electric Field Lesion Zone Configuration
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current cancer treatments, particularly for cancers like lung, liver, and pancreatic cancer, face challenges in achieving high survival rates due to recurrence and spread of cancer cells, with conventional therapies often failing to eliminate all cancer cells and leading to micrometastases that can result in treatment failure.
Innovation Solution
A system utilizing pulsed electric field (PEF) energy delivery to create targeted lesions with specific zone configurations, including pulsed electric field, thermal, and immune response zones, to enhance adaptive immune responses and synergize with immune checkpoint inhibitors, thereby improving treatment efficacy.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional cancer therapies are used to treat tumors, then tumor cells are destroyed, but cancer cells often recur or spread leading to treatment failure
Solution Approach 1:
The treatment creates a segmented lesion structure with distinct zones (thermal zone, PEF zone, immune response zone) that perform different functions. The immune response zone specifically targets preventing cancer cell spread and recurrence, while the thermal zone destroys primary tumor cells.
Solution Approach 2:
The pulsed electric field treatment is applied preliminarily to create an immune response zone before cancer cells can spread or recur. This preliminary immune activation prepares the body to eliminate residual cancer cells and prevent micrometastases.
2Reliability
If pulsed electric field energy is delivered to create lesions, then adaptive immune response is enhanced, but cavitation and excessive thermal zones may occur causing tissue damage
Solution Approach 1:
The generator uses energy delivery algorithms that dynamically adjust PEF parameters (voltage, pulse duration, frequency) to create the desired immune response zone while maintaining thermal and cavitation effects within safe limits. This parameter optimization resolves the contradiction between immune activation and tissue protection.
3Reliability
If high energy is used to destroy all cancer cells, then tumor elimination is improved, but damage to surrounding healthy tissue increases
Solution Approach 1:
The treatment creates locally differentiated zones within the lesion: a thermal zone for tumor destruction, a PEF zone for immune activation, and an immune response zone for preventing recurrence. This local quality differentiation allows effective tumor elimination while protecting surrounding healthy tissue through targeted energy delivery.
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
The PEF energy delivery system effectively creates lesions that minimize cavitation and thermal zones, maximizing immune response zones, leading to enhanced adaptive immune activation and improved treatment outcomes, including increased CD8+/CD4+ T-cell ratios and tumor antigen release, which can make tumors responsive to therapies like anti-PD1 therapy.
Implementation Method 1
an instrument having at least one energy delivery body, wherein the at least one energy delivery body is configured to be positioned so as to direct pulsed electric field energy to the tissue creating a lesion
Implementation Method 2
the plurality of zones includes a thermal zone
Data Source
AI summary
Treatment of damaged, diseased, abnormal, obstructive, cancerous or undesired tissue (e.g. a tumor, a benign tumor, a malignant tumor, a cyst, or an area of diseased tissue, etc.) is provided by delivering specialized pulsed electric field (PEF) energy to target tissue areas in a specific dose so as to obtain a superior outcome. The PEF energy and delivery has been optimized to provide advanced treatment of target tissue areas, including destruction of undesired tissue and generation of improved inflammatory and immune responses. These various types of treatment are controlled by a variety of factors including the electrode geometry, the dose of PEF energy delivered, the time the energy is delivered over, and the waveform of the PEF energy itself. The PEF energy is delivered in the form a dose which is considered to be one application of the specialized energy. Each dose creates a lesion in the target tissue area.