Investigation of Ablation Techniques for Different Types of Brain Tumors

Abstract

The main goal of treatment of intracranial neoplasms is to eradicate tumor cells with minimal disruption of surrounding normal parenchyma. Stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) has been used as one modality of treatment in appropriate cases. SRS is limited by the dose a patient can tolerate and adverse effects of radiation. These limitations provide a niche for alternative therapies. Furthermore, tissue samples cannot be obtained during treatment. Recently, thermal therapies including high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) and laser interstitial thermal therapy (LITT) have been proposed as alternatives. The purpose of this study is to develop simplified 3D models of different types of brain tumors from MRI scans, investigate different ablation techniques for removal of such tumor, and optimize these techniques for different locations, sizes, and types of tumors. With the vast advancements in medical devices technology, brain tumors have become increasingly viable to cure through surgery and/or adjuvant noninvasive therapies. The choice of the treatment plan is highly dependent on the location of the tumor. Tumors located deep in the parenchyma of the brain can only be treated by ablative techniques and therefore, thorough investigation of techniques like High Intensity Focused Ultrasound (HIFU) and Laser Interstitial Thermal Therapy (LITT) is imperative. In this study, HIFU and LITT have been investigated and compared under four simulative environments in COMSOL Multiphysics which also accommodate the possibility of the presence of an artery or an organ near tumor site. It has been found out that HIFU is more focally contained compared to LITT. LITT causes more irreversible damage to the tumor compared to HIFU. Both the techniques resulted in damage to nearby artery, but the damage caused by HIFU was less compared to that caused by LITT.