MRI-Guided Laser Induced Thermal Therapy

Malignant Glioma

Does MR-guided laser interstitial thermal therapy (MRgLITT) prior to chemotherapy and/or radiation give patients a beneficial increase in overall survival? Laser induced thermal therapy (LITT) is a minimally invasive procedure for destroying tissue through generation of heat.

Laser induced thermal therapy (LITT) is a procedure for destroying tissue through generation of heat. When used in conjunction with fiberoptic applicators, it offers an excellent means of minimally invasive surgery. As opposed to other thermal techniques like radio-frequency (RF) ablation, or cryo-ablation, LITT may be significantly faster and may exhibit sharper boundary of the thermal ablation zone. More importantly, LITT is highly compatible with MR imaging and when coupled with MR thermal imaging (MRTI) guidance, precise monitoring of the thermal ablation zone in order to avoid eloquent or critical structures is possible. In this study, we propose to evaluate MR-thermal image guided laser interstitial therapy for the treatment of inoperable brain tumors as upfront therapy prior to initiation of chemotherapy and radiation. MR-thermal imaging (MRTI) will be used to provide information on thermal dose delivered to the target and be used to control laser delivery to prevent damage to critical structures.

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