Periodic Pulsed Electric Field Therapy for Tumor Ablation and Immune Response
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional pulsed electric field (PEF) therapies for treating cancer and other abnormal tissues face challenges such as thermal sequelae, cavitation, and limited immune response enhancement, failing to effectively eliminate cancer cells and prevent recurrence.
Innovation Solution
A specialized PEF energy delivery system with controlled waveform parameters, including inter-cycle and inter-packet delays, generates targeted lesions with zones that minimize cavitation and thermal effects while enhancing adaptive immune responses, using a generator and energy delivery algorithm to create zones like PEF, inflammatory, and immune response zones.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional PEF therapy is applied to treat cancer, then tissue destruction is achieved, but thermal damage and cavitation occur causing harmful effects
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies periodic pulsed electric field delivery with specific inter-packet delays (e.g., 10-1000 microseconds between packets, 1000 microseconds between cycles) to allow tissue cooling and prevent thermal accumulation. This periodic action destroys cancer cells through electroporation while avoiding continuous thermal damage and cavitation that occur with conventional uninterrupted PEF therapy.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent dynamically adjusts PEF waveform parameters including voltage amplitude (e.g., 3000-6000 volts), pulse duration (e.g., 100 microseconds per packet), frequency (e.g., 400-800 kHz), and inter-packet delays based on treatment stage and tissue response. This dynamic parameter optimization enables effective tumor cell destruction while minimizing thermal sequelae and cavitation by adapting energy delivery to real-time tissue conditions.
2Reliability
If conventional PEF therapy is applied to treat cancer, then tumor cells are damaged, but immune response enhancement is limited reducing treatment efficacy
Solution Approach 1:
The patent converts the harmful effects of PEF therapy into beneficial immune responses. By delivering optimized pulsed electric fields that cause controlled tumor cell death through electroporation, the therapy releases tumor antigens and damage-associated molecular patterns (DAMPs) that stimulate dendritic cell maturation and activate cytotoxic T-cell responses. The specific waveform parameters (e.g., 3000-6000 volts, 400-800 kHz frequency) are designed to maximize immunogenic cell death while minimizing non-specific thermal damage, thereby enhancing anti-tumor immunity.
3Productivity
If conventional PEF therapy is applied to treat cancer, then treatment is delivered, but recurrence occurs due to incomplete elimination of cancer cells
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses the patient's own immune system as an intermediary to eliminate residual cancer cells that conventional PEF therapy misses. The optimized PEF waveform parameters (inter-packet delays of 10-1000 microseconds, voltages of 3000-6000 volts) induce immunogenic cell death that releases tumor antigens, activating dendritic cells and cytotoxic T-cells. These activated immune cells then seek out and destroy micrometastases and residual cancer cells throughout the body, preventing recurrence that would otherwise occur with standard PEF treatment.
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 system achieves effective tissue destruction with minimal thermal damage, promoting a robust immune response, including increased CD8+/CD4+ T-cells and tumor antigen release, enhancing cancer treatment outcomes.
Implementation Method 1
a generator in electrical communication with the at least one energy delivery body, wherein the generator includes at least one energy delivery algorithm configured to provide the pulsed electric field energy in a manner that creates a plurality of zones within the lesion which elicits an increase in an adaptive immune response of the patient
Implementation Method 2
Conventional pulsed electric field (PEF) therapies for treating cancer and other abnormal tissues face challenges such as thermal sequelae, cavitation, and limited immune response enhancement
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 energy to target tissue areas in a specific dose so as to obtain a superior outcome. The specialized 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. The specialized PEF energy provides superior outcomes to radiofrequency ablation and irreversible electroporation.