Översikt
- Datum:Startar 14 januari 2026, 09:00Slutar 14 januari 2026, 12:00
- Plats:EB, Hörsalsvägen 11
- Opponent:Professor Kavitha Arunachalam, Indian Institute of Technology Madras
- AvhandlingLäs avhandlingen (Öppnas i ny flik)
Hyperthermia (HT) has shown to be a powerful enhancer of chemotherapy and radiotherapy in numerous clinical trials. Its therapeutic effectiveness depends on the thermal dose delivered, which is determined by the quality and consistency of the applied heating. Quality Assurance (QA) guidelines ensure that HT devices deliver heat in a controlled, safe, and reproducible manner.
However, translation of QA guidelines into routine clinical practice has been limited by the lack of suitable tools and the lack of practical implementation guidance. This thesis addresses these gaps by (i) developing new phantoms for HT QA and (ii) demonstrating the application of the latest QA guidelines for both superficial (SHT) and deep HT (DHT).
For SHT applications, a novel fat-mimicking phantom was developed using an ethylcellulose-stabilized glycerol-in-oil emulsion. This material exhibited dielectric and thermal properties representative of fat tissue, with acceptable variability across the frequency range relevant for HT. Subsequently, it was applied in the QA evaluation of the DHT Lucite Cone Applicator (LCA), following the quality metrics defined in current HT guidelines. This experience provided practical insight into the implementation of guidelines in the clinical environment.
For DHT, the phantom design was optimised, supported by computational studies, to represent different anatomical areas. These phantoms were then used in a multi-institutional QA comparative study involving six European HT centress, in which the heating and focusing ability of clinically used DHT devices was evaluated. The study also revealed several practical challenges in QA implementation, including experimental setup, probe calibration, procedure duration, and the definition of suitable quality metrics. These findings directly contributed to the development of the latest QA guidelines for deep HT and support their integration into routine clinical practice.
Finally, the relationship between QA guidelines and the EU Medical Devices Regulation (MDR) regulatory framework was clarified using an in-house developed phased-array radiative applicator as a case study, outlining key steps from preliminary investigation to system verification and validation.
However, translation of QA guidelines into routine clinical practice has been limited by the lack of suitable tools and the lack of practical implementation guidance. This thesis addresses these gaps by (i) developing new phantoms for HT QA and (ii) demonstrating the application of the latest QA guidelines for both superficial (SHT) and deep HT (DHT).
For SHT applications, a novel fat-mimicking phantom was developed using an ethylcellulose-stabilized glycerol-in-oil emulsion. This material exhibited dielectric and thermal properties representative of fat tissue, with acceptable variability across the frequency range relevant for HT. Subsequently, it was applied in the QA evaluation of the DHT Lucite Cone Applicator (LCA), following the quality metrics defined in current HT guidelines. This experience provided practical insight into the implementation of guidelines in the clinical environment.
For DHT, the phantom design was optimised, supported by computational studies, to represent different anatomical areas. These phantoms were then used in a multi-institutional QA comparative study involving six European HT centress, in which the heating and focusing ability of clinically used DHT devices was evaluated. The study also revealed several practical challenges in QA implementation, including experimental setup, probe calibration, procedure duration, and the definition of suitable quality metrics. These findings directly contributed to the development of the latest QA guidelines for deep HT and support their integration into routine clinical practice.
Finally, the relationship between QA guidelines and the EU Medical Devices Regulation (MDR) regulatory framework was clarified using an in-house developed phased-array radiative applicator as a case study, outlining key steps from preliminary investigation to system verification and validation.
