THERAPEUTIC APPARATUS FOR TREATING A SUBJECT USING MAGNETIC NANOPARTICLES

• US 20110306870A1
• Filed: 02/22/2010
• Published: 12/15/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 02/27/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. (Koninklijke Philips N.V.)
• Original Assignee: Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. (Koninklijke Philips N.V.)
• Inventors: Kuhn, Michael Harald
• Granted Patent: US 9,417,302 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 600/411
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 17/2251 characterised by coupling elements between the apparatus, e.g. shock wave apparatus or locating means, and the patient, e.g. details of bags, pressure control of bag on patient
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 18/18 by applying electromagnetic radiation, e.g. microwaves radiation therapy A61N5/00
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 18/1815 using microwaves
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2017/00084 Temperature
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2018/00666 using a threshold value
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2018/00678 upper
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2018/00791 Temperature
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2090/374 NMR or MRI
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/01 Measuring temperature of body parts ; Diagnostic temperature sensing, e.g. for malignant or inflamed tissue clinical contact thermometers G01K13/20
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0515 Magnetic particle imaging
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/055 involving electronic [EMR] or nuclear [NMR] magnetic resonance, e.g. magnetic resonance imaging
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/7207 of noise induced by motion artifacts
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/7267 involving training the classification device
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/406 using implantable thermoseeds or injected particles for localized hyperthermia preparations of seeds and particles A61K41/0052
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 2/02 using magnetic fields produced by coils, including single turn loops or electromagnets A61N2/12 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 5/02 using microwaves
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 7/02 Localised ultrasound hyperthermia hyperthermia in general A61F7/00
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 33/4804 Spatially selective measurement of temperature or pH
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 33/4808 Multimodal MR, e.g. MR combined with positron emission tomography [PET], MR combined with ultrasound or MR combined with computed tomography [CT]
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 33/4814 MR combined with ultrasound

Abstract

A therapeutic apparatus for treating a subject comprising: a first heating means adapted for heating a first region of the subject, a first control means for controlling the power directed into the first region by the first heating means such that the power stays below a threshold value, a particle heating means adapted for heating magnetic nanoparticles within a second region of the subject using a time varying magnetic field, wherein the first region comprises the second region.

Claims

1. A therapeutic apparatus for treating a subject (100, 200) comprising:

a first heating means (104, 204, 506, 606, 706) adapted for heating a first region (106, 206) of the subject,

a first control means (108) for controlling the power directed into the first region by the first heating means such that the power stays below a threshold value,

a particle heating means (110, 230, 232, 234, 236,238, 512, 612, 712) adapted for heating magnetic nanoparticles (114) within a second region (112,212) of the subject using a time varying magnetic field,

wherein the first region comprises the second region, wherein the first heating means is an ultrasonic heating means, wherein the threshold value is selected such that the temperature increase in the first region due to the ultrasonic heating means does not induce cell death, wherein the second region comprises at least one hyperthermia zone, wherein the at least one hyperthermia zone has a concentration of magnetic nanoparticles sufficient to cause a temperature increase which induces cell death when heated by the particle heating means, and wherein the ultrasonic heating means is a high intensity focused ultrasound unit (204, 506, 606, 706).

2. The therapeutic apparatus of claim 1, wherein the particle heating means modulates the magnetic field in the second zone such that it heats the magnetic nanoparticles using one of the following mechanisms:

Brownian relaxation, Né

el relaxation, or a combination of Brownian relaxation and Né

el relaxation.

3. The therapeutic apparatus of claim 1, wherein the particle heating means further comprises a magnetic field generation means (234, 236, 238) adapted for heating the magnetic nanoparticles using focused magnetic particle therapy, wherein the therapeutic apparatus further comprises a second control means (208) for controlling the particle heating means, wherein the second control means is adapted for controlling the location of the second region, wherein the second control means is adapted to receive planning data for planning treatment of the subject, and wherein the therapeutic apparatus is adapted for performing therapy using the planning data.

4. The therapeutic apparatus of claim 3, wherein the magnetic field generation means is further adapted for acquiring medical image data within an imaging zone (214) using magnetic particle imaging, wherein the imaging zone comprises the first region, and wherein the second control means is adapted for generating planning data using the medical image data.

5. The therapeutic apparatus of claim 3, wherein the therapeutic apparatus further comprises a magnetic resonance imaging system (208, 230, 232, 234, 236, 238) adapted for acquiring medical image data within an imaging zone (214), wherein the imaging zone comprises the first region, and wherein the second control means is adapted for generating planning data using the medical image data.

6. The therapeutic apparatus of claim 5, wherein the magnetic resonance imaging system is adapted for acquiring temperature data using magnetic resonance thermometry, wherein the medical image data comprises temperature data, wherein the first control unit is adapted for limiting the temperature in the first region using the medical image data, and wherein the second control means is adapted for controlling the temperature in the second region using the medical image data.

7. The therapeutic apparatus of claim 4, wherein the therapeutic apparatus is adapted for acquiring medical image data at periodic intervals, wherein the therapeutic apparatus is adapted for identifying the location of a target region (216) within the subject using the medical image data, wherein the second control means is adapted for generating real time planning data using the location of the target region, wherein the second control unit is adapted for adjusting the location of the second region based upon motion and/or deformation of the target region using the real time planning data.

8. The therapeutic apparatus of claim 1, wherein the therapeutic apparatus is operable for treating any one of the following:

tumors in an eye, tumors in the brain, tumors in nerve bundles, tumors in the spinal cord, tumors in a lung, tumors in the prostate gland, tumors adjacent to an eye, tumors adjacent to the brain, tumors adjacent to nerve bundles, tumors adjacent to a lung, tumors adjacent to the prostate gland, tumors adjacent to the wall of the bladder, tumors adjacent to the rectum, tumors adjacent to a organ boundary, multiple tumors distributed throughout the subject, tumors with multiple small foci, tumors adjacent to air tissue boundaries, or tumors adjacent to bone tissue boundaries.

9. A computer program product comprising a set of executable instructions for execution by a therapeutic apparatus for treating a subject (100, 200), comprising the steps of:

controlling a first heating means (104, 204, 506, 606, 706) adapted for heating a first region (106, 206) of the subject such that the power directed into the first region by the first heating means stays below a threshold value (300, 314),

controlling a particle heating means (110, 230, 232, 234, 236,238, 512, 612, 712) adapted for heating magnetic nanoparticles (114) within a second region (302, 420) using a time varying magnetic field, and wherein the first region comprises the second region, wherein the first heating means is an ultrasonic heating means, wherein the threshold value is selected such that the temperature increase in the first region due to the ultrasonic heating means does not induce cell death, wherein the second region comprises at least one hyperthermia zone, wherein the at least one hyperthermia zone has a concentration of magnetic nanoparticles sufficient to cause a temperature increase which induces cell death when heated by the particle heating means, and wherein the ultrasonic heating means is a high intensity focused ultrasound unit (204, 506, 606, 706).

10. The computer program product of claim 9, wherein the particle heating means comprises a magnetic field generation means (234, 236, 238) adapted for focused magnetic particle therapy, the computer program product further comprising the steps of:

receiving planning data for planning treatment of the subject (400),

controlling the treatment of the subject using the planning data (412), and

controlling the location of the second region using the magnetic field generation means (418).

11. The computer program product of claim 10 further comprising the steps of:

acquiring medical image data within an imaging zone (402) using magnetic particle imaging and/or magnetic resonance imaging, wherein the imaging zone comprises the first region, and

generating planning data using the medical image data (404).

12. The computer program product of claim 11 further comprising the steps of:

acquiring medical image data at periodic intervals (406),

identifying the location of a target region within a subject using the medical image data acquired at periodic intervals (408),

generating real time planning data using the location of the target region (412), and

adjusting the location of the second region based upon motion and/or deformation of the target region using the real time planning data (416).