Calculations of heating patterns of an array of microwave interstitial antennas

In this paper, the heating (temperature) distribution patterns of an array of uniformly and step-insulated interstitial antennas located in inhomogeneous tissue and cancerous regions of the human body are calculated. Specifically, the bioheat equation, which takes into account various heat exchange mechanisms such as blood flow rate, heat conduction, and metabolic heat generation, was solved using the finite difference method, while the electromagnetic power absorbed (SAR) in the tissue region heated using an array of interstitial antennas was determined using the finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) method. Numerical results showing the validation of the developed computer program are presented, and the effect of varying parameters such as the blood flow rate on the resulting heating rate and patterns are examined. Possible clinical implementation of the developed temperature distribution-EM power deposition pattern computer code in treatment planning is described.