Damianou C. PhD, Professor, University of Technology, Limassol, Cyprus
Spanoudes Κ. DVM, PhD student, VET EX MACHINA LTD, Nicosia, Cyprus
Introduction
In this paper Focused Ultrasound (FUS) technology was used for veterinary oncology applications. This modality is an additional tool beyond traditional approaches. In this study, we investigated the ability of FUS to precisely ablate hypothetical targets mimicking canine and feline tumours.
Materials and methods
Agar-based targets were ablated with a Magnetic Resonance guided FUS (MRgFUS) robotic system featuring a single-element spherically focused transducer of 2.7 MHz. The robotic system includes 3 linear cartesian axes.
Results
The MRgFUS system was capable of producing well-defined overlapping lesions in the mimicking tumours. The tumour-mimicking phantom was imaged using MRI.
Conclusions
This technology has the potential as a therapeutic solution for veterinary oncologic patients. Although the device is MRI compatible, it can be used also outside the MRI setting using ultrasonic imaging. The next step is to apply this technology to animals and humans.
References
- Spanoudes K, Evripidou N, Giannakou M, Drakos T, Menikou G, Damianou C (2021) A high intensity focused ultrasound system for veterinary oncology applications.
- J Med Ultrasound 29, 195-202.
