Treatment planning for intratumoral modulation therapy: Phase I reduction to practice

这项建议源于一个由四人组成的跨学科团队，每个团队都有独特的专业知识：物理学、工程学、神经生理学和神经外科。它建立在我们团队发表的研究结果的基础上，即侵袭性脑癌(如胶质母细胞瘤)容易受到低强度电场刺激，但正常神经元不容易。我们提出，这种电场刺激是通过直接植入肿瘤的电极或肿瘤内调制疗法(IMT)来实现的。这种植入通常在脑深部刺激区进行，用于治疗帕金森氏病的震颤。不同的是，我们需要以最少的电极来靶向整个肿瘤的电场。我们的团队已经发现了一种计算机优化算法，它在这方面做得很好，结果是当我们旋转电子设备时 随着时间的推移，我们可以覆盖更大的体积，肿瘤的每个部分都会从多个方向经历电场。我们称之为“动态定向电场疗法”(DIFT)。 这一阶段的简化实践项目是为IMT创建一个新的治疗计划系统(TPS)，该系统集成了植入电极的电场计算和优化。TPS将考虑到不规则形状的肿瘤靶点，为每个患者优化电极的放置及其刺激模式。这一步是提高团队正在等待的专利的商业价值的关键下一步，该TPS作为吸引行业合作伙伴的产品。 平均每天有27名加拿大人被诊断出患有脑瘤。手术、放疗和化疗将胶质母细胞瘤患者的生存期从几个月延长到一年多一点。这种非药物、长期低强度的肿瘤内治疗方法前景看好，目前，治疗选择有限，副作用很大。该项目将为创建一家加拿大初创公司提供一个通过/不通过的决定。 加拿大将从创造高质量的就业机会和将科学和工程应用于脑癌的经济活动中受益。

This proposal originated from an interdisciplinary team of four, each with unique expertise: physics, engineering, neurophysiology and neurosurgery. It builds on our team's published research findings that aggressive brain cancers (e.g. glioblastoma) are vulnerable to low intensity electric field stimulation, but not normal neurons. We proposed that such electric field stimulation is to be delivered by electrodes implanted directly into the tumor, or Intratumoral Modulation Therapy (IMT). Such implantation is commonly performed in the area of deep brain stimulation for the treatment of tremor in Parkinson's diseases. The difference is that we need to deliver the electric field to target the entire tumor with the fewest number of electrodes. Our team has found a computer optimization algorithm that does this well, with the result that when we rotate the electric field over time, we can cover a larger volume, and that each part of the tumor experiences electric field from many directions. We have termed this "Dynamically-oriented Electric Field Therapy" (DEFT). This Phase I reduction-to-practice project is to create a new treatment planning system (TPS) for IMT which integrates the computation and optimization of electric field from implanted electrodes. The TPS will optimize the placements of electrodes and their stimulation patterns for each individual patient that will take into consideration irregularly-shaped tumor targets. This step is a critical next step in enhancing the commercial value of the team's patent pending DEFT with this TPS as the product to engage industry partners. On average, 27 Canadians are diagnosed with a brain tumor every day. Surgery, radiation and chemotherapy extends glioblastoma patients' survival from a few months to just over a year. This non-drug, long-term low intensity intratumoral approach holds promise, where currently, treatment options are limited with substantial side effects. This project will provide a go/no-go decision on the creation of a Canadian start-up company. Canada will benefit from the creation of high quality jobs and economic activity in the application of science and engineering to brain cancer.