Seminar
Tuesday, March 26, 2019 - 12:00am
Graduate Student Craig Pointer will present
"Using the Photoacoustic Effect to Monitor Temperature During Cancer Therapy"
on March 26, 2019 at 4:10pm in Neville Hall, room 3
Thermotherapy is a class of therapeutics that uses elevated or depressed temperature to treat illnesses, known as hyperthermia and cryotherapy, respectively. Hyperthermia has shown potential as a cancer treatment method by using heat to weaken or eliminate cancer cells. The use of hyperthermia in tandem with other treatment methods, such as chemotherapy or radiotherapy, has potential to improve treatment success by maximizing eliminated cancer cells and minimizing collateral damage, making it an appealing addition to existing methods. The ability to accurately and efficiently measure tissue temperature during hyperthermia treatment is critical. Monitoring temperature at the tumor site is crucial, both to ensure sufficient heat is applied to weaken the cancer cells and to minimize collateral damage to healthy cells surrounding the tumor site. Current methods to monitor temperature at tumor sites either require extensive, time-consuming calibrations, or are invasive, such as manually injecting a thermocouple into the tumor site.
I will present research on a new photoacoustic thermometry method to determine the absolute temperature of tissues in real-time. Using the photoacoustic effect, the absorption of pulsed light by the sample followed by a series of emitted photoacoustic signal response is used to create a ratiometric measurement to determine the absolute temperature of the sample. The ratiometric measurement creates an internal calibration that means a simplified model is possible, compared to traditional photoacoustic thermometry methods. Real-time temperature monitoring during hyperthermia treatment is feasible due to few external dependencies, making this a viable method for use in future cancer treatment