A new thermal dose model based on Vogel-Tammann-Fulcher behaviour in thermal damage processes

Thermal dose models are metrics that quantify the thermal effect on tissues based on the temperature and the time of exposure. These models are used to predict and control the outcome of hyperthermia (up to 45^°C) treatments, and of thermal coagulation treatments at higher temperatures (>45^°C). The validity and accuracy of the commonly used models (CEM43) are questionable when heating above the hyperthermia temperature range occurs, leading to an over-estimation of the accumulation of thermal damage. A new CEM43 dose model based on an Arrhenius-type, Vogel-Tammann-Fulcher, equation using published data, is introduced in this work. The new dose values for the same damage threshold that was produced at different in-vivo skin experiments were in the same order of magnitude, while the current dose values varied by two orders of magnitude. In addition, the dose values obtained using the new model for the same damage threshold in 6 lesions in ex-vivo liver experiments were more consistent than the current model dose values. The contribution of this work is to provide new modeling approaches to inform more robust thermal dosimetry for improved thermal therapy modeling, monitoring, and control.