Focused microwave thermotherapy for preoperative treatment of invasive breast cancer: a review of clinical studies.

Background: Preoperative focused microwave thermotherapy (FMT) is a promising method for targeted treatment of breast cancer cells. Results of four multi-institutional clinical studies of preoperative FMT for treating invasive carcinomas in the intact breast are reviewed.

Methods: Externally applied wide-field adaptive phased-array FMT has been investigated both as a preoperative heat-alone ablation treatment and as a combination treatment with preoperative anthracycline-based chemotherapy for breast tumors ranging in ultrasound-measured size from 0.

Focused microwave phased array thermotherapy for ablation of early-stage breast cancer: results of thermal dose escalation.

Background: Tumor ablation as a means of treating breast cancer is being investigated. Microwave energy is promising because it can preferentially heat high-water-content breast carcinomas, compared to adipose and glandular tissues.

Methods: This is a prospective, multicenter, nonrandomized dose-escalation study of microwave treatment.

Focused microwave phased array thermotherapy for primary breast cancer.

Background: A pilot safety study of focused microwave phased array thermotherapy in the treatment of primary breast carcinomas was conducted.

Methods: Ten patients with breast carcinomas beneath the skin surface that ranged in maximal clinical size from 1 to 8 cm (mean, 4.3 cm) were treated with the breast compressed in the prone position.