Induction of hyperthermia using implanted electrodes

Initial experience with interstitial heating at M. D. Anderson Hospital dates from September 1978 and includes cases in which exploration was done for primary resections or metastatic lesions without evidence of distant metastasis, in which local control was indicated and was of clinical importance. Eleven such cases have been encountered and treated with hyperthermia durations of 1 hr, with 5 to 25 treatment episodes per patient. It is the most reliable and least toxic of the current methods used to induce local hyperthermia. Tumor temperatures of 50 degrees are easily achievable, and average temperatures over 43 degrees have always been obtained. The major limitation of interstitial hyperthermia is the surgical exploration required for implantation of the electrodes. We, therefore, currently limit use of this technique to patients who would undergo exploration with the goal of surgical extirpation of the tumor.