System and method for treating cellular disorders in a living being
First Claim
1. A method for treating a tumor in a body which is in communication with arterial and venous blood flow comprising:
- a. mapping the surface and volume of said tumor;
b. locating the arteries upstream of said tumor;
c. calculating an optimum controlled dose of a cytotoxic drug suitable for treating said tumor;
d. infusing a controlled dose of said cytotoxic drug into said tumor from one or more of said arteries at select locations upstream of said tumor; and
e. withdrawing blood from one or more veins at select locations downstream of said tumor for extracorporeal treatment to remove said cytotoxic drug from the blood withdrawn whereby a substantial portion of said cytotoxic drug is infused into said tumor and prevented from diffusing into said body.
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Abstract
A system and method is provided for the treatment of hypreproliferative diseases, such as cancer, using real-time computer control to visualize, to position and to operate drug infusing and imaging devices within the body of the patient. The invention employs a computerized imaging system (such as CAT scan, MRI imaging, ultrasound imaging, infrared, X-ray, UV/visible light fluorescence, Raman spectroscopy, single photon emission computed tomography or microwave imaging) to sense the position of a drug infusing catheter within the body. In a preferred embodiment, the invention provides real-time computer control to maintain and adjust the position of an infusion catheter and/or the position of the patient relative to the infusion catheter; and also provides real-time computer control of the operation of the infusion catheter based on images and/or computer models of the dispersion of one or more cytotoxic or other drugs or therapeutically active agents through the vascular bed of the neoplastic tissue being treated. In other preferred embodiments of the invention, vasoconstrictive drugs are applied locally based on computer modeling of blood flow patterns in order to channel blood flow carrying the cytotoxic drug or other therapeutic agent into the neoplastic tissue, and to minimize exposure of healthy tissue to such drugs.
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Citations
17 Claims
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1. A method for treating a tumor in a body which is in communication with arterial and venous blood flow comprising:
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a. mapping the surface and volume of said tumor; b. locating the arteries upstream of said tumor; c. calculating an optimum controlled dose of a cytotoxic drug suitable for treating said tumor; d. infusing a controlled dose of said cytotoxic drug into said tumor from one or more of said arteries at select locations upstream of said tumor; and e. withdrawing blood from one or more veins at select locations downstream of said tumor for extracorporeal treatment to remove said cytotoxic drug from the blood withdrawn whereby a substantial portion of said cytotoxic drug is infused into said tumor and prevented from diffusing into said body. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 17)
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16. The method of claim 16, wherein said sensitizing agent is selected from the group consisting of radionuclides of technicium or iridium;
- nitroimidazoles;
halogenated pyrimidines (BUdR);
methylated xanthines;
cytokines;
interferons;
lymphokines;
interleukin-2;
tumor necrosis factor; and
transforming growth factor-beta.
- nitroimidazoles;
Specification