Prostate Cancer Research Projects

University of Chicago

Dr. Scott Eggener

“A Study to Evaluate Magnetic Resonance Thermal Image-guided Laser-Induced Thermal Therapy for Pinpoint destruction of Prostate Cancer.”

This human clinical trial, approved by the FDA, will test a treatment that can eliminate prostate cancer cells without damaging the surrounding tissues. The research team will evaluate the feasibility of a FDA-approved thermal therapy and feedback system (Visualase® Thermal Therapy System) for the treatment of biopsy confirmed and MR-imageable prostate lesions. This system has been used in humans for the treatment of brain, spine,thyroid, and liver cancers; however it has not yet been evaluated for the primary treatment of prostate cancer.

This system allows delivery of laser energy while the patient is simultaneously being imaged by an MRI unit. The system’s real-time MR thermal imaging (MRTI) provides information on the thermal dose delivered to the target, resulting in a more precise and controlled delivery which has not been possible with other cancer removal therapies. The researchers hypothesize the system can be a practical and feasible treatment for low-risk localized prostate cancer and allow patients to avoid the complications associated with radical whole-gland therapy. This clinical trial will take up to 2 years. PFC Funding Partners-The Longest Day of Golf Chicago and the University of Chicago Foundation.

1. GBM Guide – MGH Brain Tumor Center

   Dec 2, 2005 … A patient guide. by John W. Henson, M.D., MGH Brain Tumor Center … The exact name and grade of the tumor determine treatment options, …
   brain.mgh.harvard.edu/patientguide.htm – Cached – Similar

2. [PDF]
   

   Brain Tumor Guide for the Newly Diagnosed

   File Format: PDF/Adobe Acrobat – Quick View
   Jul 29, 2007 … For a list of major brain tumor treatment centers, some of which offer ….. Isn’t the Message” can be found at Steve Dunn’s cancer guide. …
   www.virtualtrial.com/faq/Patient_Guide%203.0.pdf

3. [PDF]
   

   The Essential Guide to Brain Tumors

   File Format: PDF/Adobe Acrobat – Quick View
   40 THE ESSENTIAL GUIDE TO BRAIN TUMORS. National Brain Tumor Society | 800 934 2873 | www.braintumor.org. There are some cases where chemotherapy treatment …
   www.braintumor.org/upload/contents/330/GuideFINAL2007.pdf – Similar

1. Brain Cancer: MedlinePlus

   Focusing on Treatment: Stereotactic Radiosurgery(American Brain Tumor Association) … A Guide for Patient and Caregiver(National Brain Tumor Society) – PDF …
   www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/braincancer.html – Cached – Similar

2. Brain Tumor – Primary – Adults – Symptoms, Diagnosis, Treatment of …

   Oct 14, 2009 … Health > Times Health Guide > b > Brain Tumor – Primary – Adults … Meningiomas are another type of brain tumor. These tumors: … Treatment, however, depends on the size and type of tumor and the general health of the …
   health.nytimes.com › Times Health Guide › b – Similar

3. Brain Tumor – Children – Symptoms, Diagnosis, Treatment of Brain …

   Dec 27, 2009 … Health > Times Health Guide > b > Brain Tumor – Children … A primary brain tumor is a group (mass) of abnormal cells that start in the brain. … Astrocytoma — The main treatment is surgery to remove the tumor. …
   health.nytimes.com › Times Health Guide › b – Similar

4. Story of Hope: Surviving a Brain Tumor

   A survival guide on brain tumors by brain tumor patient Steve DePesa (gbm … those empty seats on airplanes to a brain tumor patient in need of treatment. …
   home.earthlink.net/~sdepesa/ – Cached – Similar

5. Living with a Brain Tumor: Dr. Peter Black’s Guide to …

   Amazon.com: Living with a Brain Tumor: Dr. Peter Black’s Guide to Taking Control of Your Treatment (9780805079685): Peter Black: Books.
   www.amazon.com/dp/0805079688/?tag=mbookshop1-20 – Cached

6. Brain Tumor

   
   
   Guide to easy learning with different levels of brain tumor information, visual/audio tutorial; to find the best standard brain tumor treatment available; …
   www.ontopofcancer.org/brain_tumor.php – Cached – Similar

Searches related to guide to brain tumor treatment

brain tumor removal surgery

prostate cancer treatment guide

financial help cancer treatment

chemotherapy drugs brain cancer

Watching Tumors Die

Thursday, April 2, 2009
By Sarah Petrie

Above, from left: Kamran Ahrar, M.D., and R. Jason Stafford, Ph.D., discuss an upcoming spinal surgery that will use the Visualase technology. They’ll be able to watch the tumor fully die in near real time during the procedure. Depending on where the tumor is located, the patient may or may not be awake during the procedure.

History books show that surgeons began removing cancerous tumors as early as the second century. Zoom ahead to 2009, take away the scalpels, scars and side effects that typically accompany surgery, and trade them for a tiny laser beam that zaps cancer dead on the spot. It sounds like science fiction, but our researchers and clinicians are among the first in the nation to investigate a new procedure that does just this … and more.

“It’s called laser-induced thermal therapy, and the basic theory is that the laser heats the tumor to a certain temperature to kill it,” explains Jeffrey Weinberg, M.D., associate professor in Neurosurgery, who’s conducting a clinical trial to test the effectiveness of this procedure on patients with metastatic brain tumors.
How hot is too hot for a cancerous tumor? Sixty degrees Celsius, in most cases.

“The clinical trial targets patients with otherwise inoperable tumors or those for whom other treatments failed,” Weinberg says. “This is possible because tissues surrounding the tumor aren’t harmed or affected with this procedure — an advantage over other types of brain surgeries for cancer, including radiosurgery.”

Delivering laser energy using a device only millimeters in diameter, the procedure leaves a scar no bigger than your thumb. Plus, there should be no side effects for this less-invasive surgery, which takes only a few hours from start to finish. “The laser portion should only take a few minutes, and patients will experience no swelling and little pain,” Weinberg adds.

Other forms of what also is known as ablation therapy already are in practice, killing tumors using heat, cold or electricity. So what makes this particular procedure so revolutionary? The physician actually watches the tumor die in real time, according to Kamran Ahrar, M.D., associate professor in Interventional Radiology, who has performed the procedure on a few patients with bone and spinal tumors as part of a similar clinical trial.

Weinberg agrees this is the biggest advantage of this method over other forms of treatment. “Patients don’t have to wait weeks or months for tests to confirm if the entire tumor is gone, as is the case with most surgeries. Instead, using this technology, we can convert magnetic resonance imaging into a color picture that indicates the temperature of the tissue,” he says. “This allows us to know exactly when the tumor is hot enough to fully die.”

How does it work?

Houston-based company Visualase Inc., which sells the technology, approached M. D. Anderson in 2000 for help with developing the tool. “For this procedure to be successful, the doctors must know the precise location and distribution of temperature in the tumor and that’s where the physicists come in the picture,” explains R. Jason Stafford, Ph.D., assistant professor in Imaging Physics, and lead consultant on the Visualase technology development for M. D. Anderson.

In other words, a stereotactic navigation system, “like a GPS for your brain” as Weinberg puts it, pinpoints the exact location and size of the tumor. After the surgeon drills a hole and sends the specially designed fiber directly to the tumor, the laser is activated, thus heating the tumor. Doing it in the MRI allows clinicians to monitor temperatures within the tissue. “Temperature as well as predicted regions of complete treatment are color-coded on a screen, giving us the ability to adjust or retreat a certain area, as needed,” Stafford adds.

And at M. D. Anderson, this entire procedure can be performed in one room, unlike at other institutions that also are researching the procedure. We have a dedicated intra-operative MRI suite, which is safer for patients than moving them to different locations to complete the procedure.