Selective freezing of target biological tissues after injection of solutions with specific thermal properties.
Cryosurgery is a minimally invasive surgical technique that employs the destructive effect of freezing to eradicate undesirable tissues. This paper proposes a flexible method to control the size and shape of the iceball by injecting solutions with specific thermal properties into the target tissues, to enhance freezing damage to the diseased tissues while preserving the normal tissues from injury. The cryosurgical procedure was performed using a minimally invasive cryoprobe cooled by liquid nitrogen (LN2) to obtain deep regional freezing. Several needle thermocouples were applied simultaneously to record the transient temperature to detect the freezing effect on the tissues. Simulation experiments on biological tissue (fresh pork) were performed in vitro and four different liquids were injected into the test materials; these were distilled water, an aqueous suspension of aluminum nanoparticles in water, ethanol, and a 10% solution of the cryoprotective agent dimethyl sulfoxide (Me2SO). The experimental results demonstrate that the localized injection of an appropriate solution could enhance the tumor-killing effect without altering the freezing conditions. The study also suggests the potential value of combining cryosurgery with other therapeutic methods, such as electrical, chemical, and thermal treatments, to develop new clinical modalities in the near future.
Yu
Tian-Hua
TH
Cryogenics Laboratory, P.O. Box 2711, Technical Institute of Physics and Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100080, PR China.
Liu
Jing
J
Zhou
Yi-Xin
YX
D000818:Animals; D003451:Cryoprotective Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D003452:Cryosurgery / Q000379:methods*; D004121:Dimethyl Sulfoxide / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000431:Ethanol / Q000627:therapeutic use; D005615:Freezing; D019060:Minimally Invasive Surgical Procedures / Q000379:methods*; D012996:Solutions; D013552:Swine; D014867:Water
D003451:Cryoprotective Agents; D012996:Solutions; D014867:Water; D000431:Ethanol; D004121:Dimethyl Sulfoxide