Implantable microdevices for cancer treatment
Abstract
Radiation and chemotherapy are two widely used treatment modalities for patients suffering from malignancies. Although efficacious in many cases, several factors still limit the optimization of chemical and radiation delivery to the tumors. These include irregular vasculature, hypoxia, elevated interstitial fluid pressure (IFP), and blood-tumor/blood-brain barriers. Despite many efforts to improve the delivery of chemicals/energy, the lack of adequate blood perfusion and limited penetration depth of light in tissue have frustrated these attempts. The purpose of this research is to develop implantable microdevices to optimize cancer treatment for solid tumors. The three microdevices described herein address this goal by various means including in situ generation of oxygen to address hypoxic conditions, localized generation of light to activate photosensitizing drugs for photodynamic therapy, and wireless monitoring of the IFP for efficacious chemotherapy. The first two devices employ ultrasonic powering to increase the penetration depth and reduce the directionality associated with inductive powering methods. In both cases, the received power is rectified and conditioned to either generate oxygen via electrochemical disassociation of interstitial water or generate light using an on-board LED. As for the wireless IFP sensor, we use an integrated Guyton chamber coupled to a passive LC resonator to measure the interstitial tumor pressure.
Degree
Ph.D.
Advisors
Ziaie, Purdue University.
Subject Area
Biomedical engineering|Electrical engineering
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