Microwave Technology Effectively Treats Cancer

An ablation system based on microwave energy delivers fast, precise, and controlled volume coagulation zones in the open surgery setting.

The Acculis microwave tissue ablation (MTA) system is indicated for the coagulation of soft tissue. The system is comprised of the Sulis V control unit, which generates the microwave energy, and an applicator that delivers the energy to the tissue. The surgeon selects the appropriate power level required (between 30 and 100W) and the time in seconds (from 30 seconds to 8 minutes) that he needs. The surgeon then can use several small bursts of energy to precisely and completely coagulate the area of tissue targeted. Two inputs are available, one for the surgical applicators and the other for temperature probes. The control unit is accessed via a touch screen user interface.

The Accu5i surgical probe used with the system has a biocompatible nonstick coating, and the microwave energy is passed from the control unit down the microwave cable into the applicator, emerging through a special cylinder at the tip of the applicator. The design of the applicators ensures that the energy is deposited efficiently into the tissue around the cylinder. This results in very rapid heating in the designated area, and the creation of an increasing sphere of dead tissue. The surgeon may use the optional temperature probes to monitor the temperature of key vessels near the area to be coagulated, or to confirm when the heating zone has reached the volume required.

The single-use, sterile, disposable applicator is supplied in a sterile pack that contains the applicator, two temperature probes, an integrated 2.5-meter microwave cable, and the connector to the Sulis V control unit. Each applicator may be used to coagulate up to 10 separate areas of target tissue for each patient, and is available in two sizes. The two complementary MTA temperature probes are single-use, sterile, disposable instruments used to monitor the temperature of adjacent tissues, vital structures, ducts, vessels, or nerves. The Acculis MTA system is a development of Acculis (Denmead, UK), and has received both the European community (CE) Marking and approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

"Microwaves don't cause collateral damage elsewhere in the body. They only heat up the tissue at the end of the probe and no energy is sent through the body," said David Lloyd, M.D., a consultant surgeon at University Hospitals Leicester NHS Trust (UK). "We can now treat very large tumors within a few minutes, making it suitable for someone who may have multiple tumors, which by other techniques, might take several hours to treat."

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Acculis
University Hospitals Leicester NHS Trust