TMAP @ IFE - A Framework for Guiding and Monitoring Thermal Ablations

Introduction In interventional oncology, thermal ablations are increasingly used for minimally invasive local treatment of solid malignancies, supplementing systemic treatment strategies such as chemotherapy and immunotherapy. The goal of all thermal ablation procedures is to cause cell death of disease tissue while sparing adjacent healthy tissue. Continuous thermometry allowing real-time assessment of thermal damage is the key to therapeutic efficiency and safety of such procedures. MRI is well-suited for non-invasively measuring the spatial and temporal distribution of temperature and its changes in vivo as several MR parameters are sensitive to temperature. To support the translation of MR thermometry to a clinical setting, we have developed an intuitive application for monitoring thermal treatment independent of heating source with real-time, multiplanar MRI.