There is an increasing interest in high intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) for thermo ablative tumor therapy. The attractiveness of this method is based on its ability to destroy tumor tissue non invasively while sparing surrounding tissue from outside the body. HIFU induced tissue necroses are sharply circumscribed.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFHigh-intensity focused ultrasound allows high-precision, non-invasive thermocoagulation of tissues within seconds, with sparing of surrounding areas. The resulting tissue necrosis is so sharply demarcated that the technique is also defined focused ultrasound surgery (FUS). The combination with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) allows an exact definition of the target volume and a safe guidance of FUS.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFNovel methods for hyperthermia tumor therapy, such as high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) or laser-induced thermotherapy (LITT), require accurate non-invasive temperature monitoring. Non-invasive temperature measurement using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is based on the analysis of changes in longitudinal relaxation time (T1), diffusion coefficient (D), or water proton resonance frequency (PRF). The purpose of this study was the development and comparative analysis of the three different approaches of MRI temperature monitoring (T1, D, and PRF).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBoron neutron capture therapy (BNCT) is an experimental treatment modality which depends on a sufficient cellular uptake of Boron ((10)B) followed by an exposure to a thermal neutron beam from a nuclear reactor. High energetic particles (4He and 7Li) are created during the neutron capture reaction and produce DNA damages, which lead to cell killing. Regarding BNCT, the short radiation range of He- and Li-particles is decisive for the distribution of (10)B.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMolecular imaging is defined as the characterization and measurement of biological processes at the cellular and molecular level. Molecular imaging, therefore, necessitates a sufficient amount of contrast agent within the cell. Consequently, we realized that the intracellular uptake and cell compartment specificity of the commonly used interstitial contrast agent gadolinium (Gd(3+)) with a cell-nucleus directed peptide module could be helpful.
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