A Blood Perfusion Model Of A RMS Tumor In A Local Hyperthermia Multi-Physic Scenario: A Preliminary Study

Hyperthermia concerns about the heating treatment of cancerous tissues, mostly using a radiator, i.e. an antenna, as a heat source. The main goal of this therapy, primarily used as adjuvant therapy along with radio and chemotherapy, is to reach a suitable temperature inside the neoplastic mass - about 7-8 degrees above the normal body temperature - able to kill the cancerous cells without compromising the healthy tissues. Many factors contribute to this goal, such as the radiation characteristics of the antenna, the thermal profiles of the healthy and cancerous tissues and the dynamic of the water flux inside the bolus. Moreover, despite being often overlooked, an important role is played by the perfusion characteristics of the tumor. In this work, we present a multi-physic analysis in a local hyperthermia scenario, considering a simple patch antenna resonating at 434 MHz as a heat source, a water bolus, a bi-layered body phantom and, most importantly, a tumor placed inside the phantom described employing a realistic space-dependent blood perfusion model. The results of this study show the effectiveness of the hyperthermia treatment using the physiopathology-driven perfusion model, and they may be useful in a real local hyperthermia case.