THE COMMERCIAL DEVELOPMENT OF SYSTEMS FOR APPLICATION TO HUMAN CANCER TREATMENT WITH LOCO-REGIONAL HYPERTHERMIA IS PROPOSED.

THE COMMERCIAL DEVELOPMENT OF SYSTEMS FOR APPLICATION TO HUMAN CANCER TREATMENT WITH LOCO-REGIONAL HYPERTHERMIA IS PROPOSED. THE SCOPE OF THE RESEARCH WILL INCLUDE THE DESIGN OF ULTRASONIC AND MAGNETIC INDUCTION DEVICES (APPLICATORS) IN ORDER TO DETERMINE FEASIBILITY AND COST ESTIMATES FOR PHASE II DEVELOPMENT OF PROTOTYPES. IN ADDITION TO THE RESEARCH INTO THE DESIGN OF THE ENERGY DEPOSITION APPLICATORS A MULTIFUNCTION MICROPROCESSOR SYSTEM WILL BE DESIGNED TO CONTROL THE FUNCTION OF THE ABOVE APPLICATORS AS WELL AS INTERFACES TO INTERSTITIALLY IMPLANTED ELECTRODES ALSO USED FOR TUMOR TEMPERATURE ELEVATION. THE LATTER TYPE OF ENERGY DEPOSITION IS GIVEN LOWER PRIORITY IN THAT IT IS AN INVASIVE PROCEDURE USUALLY REQUIRING SURGICAL INTERVENTION WHEREAS THE OTHER METHODS ARE NON INVASIVE. THE MULTIFUNCTION CONTROLLER WILL OPTIMIZE THE OPERATION OF THE APPLICATORS AS WELL AS CONTROL TUMOR TEMPERATURE TO DESIRED LEVELS AND FUNCTION AS THE TEMPERATURE INFORMATION TRANSMITTER TO A CENTRAL COMPUTER FACILITY. FINALLY A MICROPROCESSOR CONTROLLED 64 CHANNEL THERMOCOUPLE TEMPERATURE MEASURING SYSTEM WILL BE DESIGNED AND PROTOTYPED. THIS LATTER SYSTEM WILL HAVE SERIAL COMMUNICATIONS LINKS TO THE CONTROLLER AS WELL AS STAND ALONE CAPABILITIES AND THE CAPABILITY OF YIELD ARTIFACT FREE DATA IN HIGH RF FIELDS WITHOUT THE PROBLEM OF FIELD PERTURBATION.