Method and apparatus for skin cancer thermal therapy

• US 9,962,225 B2
• Filed: 10/07/2011
• Issued: 05/08/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 10/07/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Gradiant Research, LLC
• Original Assignee: Gradiant Research, LLC
• Inventors: McMillan, Kathleen
• Primary Examiner(s): Thomson, William
• Assistant Examiner(s): Lukjan, Sebastian X
• Application Number:
  US13/878,185
• Publication Number:
  US 20130197473A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,405 Days
• Field of Search: 607 88, 606 9, 606 10- 19
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 18/20 using laser
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 18/201 with beam delivery through a hollow tube, e.g. forming an articulated arm through a flexible conduit A61B18/22; Hand-pieces therefor
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 18/203 applying laser energy to the outside of the body
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 18/22 the beam being directed along or through a flexible conduit, e.g. an optical fibre; Couplings or hand-pieces therefor
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 18/24 with a catheter A61B18/26, A61B18/28 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2018/00023 closed, i.e. without wound contact by the fluid
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2018/00452 Skin
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2018/00476 Hair follicles
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2018/00791 Temperature
• 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: A61F 9/008 using laser
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 2005/0652 Arrays of diodes
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 2005/0659 infrared
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 5/0601 Apparatus for use inside the body
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 5/0616 Skin treatment other than tanning
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 5/062 Photodynamic therapy, i.e. excitation of an agent
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 5/067 using laser light

Abstract

An apparatus for treatment of soft tissue includes a source of radiation, a handpiece which is adapted to transmit radiation emitted from the source of radiation to a region of soft tissue, resulting in irradiated soft tissue, said handpiece being positioned adjacent to or in contact with said soft tissue region, a grid element adapted to hold at least one temperature sensor in contact with or embedded in said region of soft tissue, and a microprocessor, which converts a signal from the at least one temperature sensor into a measure of damage produced in at least two components of the irradiated soft tissue, said components comprising at least one normal tissue component and at least one malignant, hypertrophic, diseased, or unwanted component.

Claims

1. An apparatus for treatment of soft tissue, comprising:

a source of radiation;

a handpiece which is adapted to transmit radiation emitted from the source of radiation to a region of soft tissue, said handpiece adapted to be positioned adjacent to or in contact with said soft tissue region;

a grid element, having a single temperature sensor, the grid element adapted to hold the single temperature sensor at a particular location in contact with or embedded in said region of soft tissue, the single temperature sensor producing a single temperature signal for a duration of a time interval; and

a microprocessor configured to calculate two different cumulative measures of potential tissue damage at the particular location of the single temperature sensor, the two different cumulative measures of potential tissue damage both calculated using the single temperature signal from the single temperature sensor for the duration of the time interval,

the microprocessor further configured to calculate a first measure of the two different cumulative measures of potential tissue damage as a first function of the single temperature signal for the duration of the time interval, the first measure indicative of damage for a normal tissue component potentially present in the region of soft tissue, and

the microprocessor further configured to calculate a second measure of the two different cumulative measures of potential tissue damage as a second function of the single temperature signal for the duration of the time interval, the second function different from the first function, the second measure indicative of damage for a malignant, hypertrophic, or diseased component potentially present in the region of soft tissue.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the source of radiation is a coherent or incoherent source operating in a range of between 700 nm and 1310 nm.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the grid element is attached to the handpiece.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the temperature sensor comprises a thermocouple or thermistor.

5. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein the thermocouple or thermistor is contained within a needle having a proximal end and a distal end, such that the proximal end is affixed to the grid element and the distal end is embedded in the region of soft tissue.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the normal tissue component is collagen.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the malignant, hypertrophic, or diseased component is tumor cells.

8. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the normal tissue component is dermal collagen, and the at least one malignant, hypertrophic, or diseased component is skin cancer cells.

9. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein at least one of the two different cumulative measures of potential tissue damage is an Arrhenius damage integral.

10. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the handpiece comprises a cooling element for cooling the region of soft tissue for at least a portion of the time that the temperature sensor is in contact with or embedded in said soft tissue.

11. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a display unit, whereby at least one of the two different cumulative measures of potential tissue damage is displayed for at least a portion of the time that the temperature sensor is in contact with or embedded in said soft tissue.

12. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the grid element is adapted to hold at least two temperature sensors embedded at least two different depths in the irradiated soft tissue, one of the at least two temperature sensors being the single temperature sensor at the particular location in contact with or embedded in the region of soft tissue.

13. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the microprocessor is further configured to calculate the two cumulative different measures of potential tissue damage at least one of before transmission of the radiation or after transmission of the radiation.

14. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the single temperature sensor at the particular location is a first temperature sensor, and wherein the grid element is further adapted to hold one or more second temperature sensors at one or more respective locations different from the particular location.