Microwave Radiation Promising for Breast Cancer

In a phase II trial, microwave radiation focused externally on the breast resulted in significant tumor kill in a majority of patients. The results were reported in the May 2002 issue of the Annals of Surgical Oncology.

The technology was invented by Dr. Alan J. Fenn, a senior staff member at the Lincoln Laboratory of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT, Cambridge, MA, USA). Dr. Fenn realized that the same focused microwave technology used for missile detection could perhaps be used to treat breast cancer cells. A new randomized clinical trial enrolling 220 women has already begun.

The microwave thermotherapy technology was licensed to Celsion Corp. (Columbia, MD, USA) which developed the clinical system and is now funding the clinical studies. Celsion calls the system Adaptive Phased Array Thermotherapy. Treatment takes only about 60 minutes. The focused microwaves generate heat, which shrinks large tumors and kills small ones. The goal of the therapy is to kill tumor cells and reduce additional surgery.




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