Treatment planning of brain implants using vascular information and a new template technique

A new template technique has been developed for implanting hyperthermia catheters in the treatment of brain tumors. The technique utilizes an imaging template and a drill template which can be rigidly secured to the head with three skull screws. The anatomic and vascular information needed for hyperthermia treatment planning may be assessed with three-dimensional magnetic resonance (MR) imaging and angiography acquisitions which use a surface coil. In the companioning treatment planning system the catheter positions and lengths and the electrodes in the catheter can be interactively manipulated relative to the anatomy and vasculature. The visualization of the blood vessels relative to the template allows the minimization of the risk on intracranial hemorrhages. This template technique is useful for any brain tumor implants, especially when a large number of catheters are involved. A phantom test has shown that this procedure has an accuracy in the order of 1 mm provided that the MR-related geometry distortions are minimized.