Quantitative comparison of thermal dose models in normal canine brain

Area of Science:

• Oncology
• Medical Imaging
• Biophysics

Background:

• Minimally invasive thermal ablative therapies offer benefits over traditional surgery for solid tumors.
• Magnetic Resonance Temperature Imaging (MRTI) aids in estimating thermal damage using temperature history.
• Variability in thermal dose models affects the reliability of thermal dosimetry.

Purpose of the Study:

• To quantitatively compare three thermal dose models: Arrhenius rate process, CEM43, and threshold temperature.
• To assess the reliability of these models in predicting thermal damage using the Dice Similarity Coefficient (DSC).

Main Methods:

• The DSC was employed to compare predicted thermal damage zones with post-therapy contrast-enhanced T1-weighted images in canine brains.
• The outer edge of the ablation region served as a surrogate for thermal coagulation limits.
• The impact of varying thresholds on model prediction accuracy was investigated.

Main Results:

• All three models demonstrated good agreement (DSC > 0.7) with post-treatment imaging at established thresholds.
• Models showed consistent high spatial overlap, low variability, and minimal dependence on temperature uncertainty.
• No significant difference was found between DSC values at cited thresholds and peak DSC values.

Conclusions:

• The three thermal dose models reliably predict post-contrast tissue damage in rapid ablation procedures.
• These models can enhance MRTI's capability for real-time thermal therapy control.
• Validated thermal dosimetry improves minimally invasive cancer treatment outcomes.