Development of accurate dielectric property imaging for 1.5T MRI

Within the hyperthermia unit, patients with cancer are being treated by raising tumor temperatures to the range of 40 - 45�C. Around 150 new patients are being treated each year with hyperthermia to improve radio- or chemotherapy. In the Erasmus Cancer Institute, simulations are used for pre-treatment planning and to calculate improved settings in real-time based on measured temperatures and patient feedback. This allows to maximize the dose (heat) delivered to the tumor tissue. Recently, the worldwide unique combination of a hyperthermia antenna applicator in combination with a 1.5T magnetic resonance (MR) scanner was installed (see photo). This device can monitor the 3D temperature distribution in the patient during heating using MR temperature imaging and, hence, allows to further improve the treatment.

Assignment

For treatment planning, 3D patient-specific models are generated by discriminating tissues using computed tomography (CT) and MR imaging scans. A 3D dielectric model is then created by assigning literature based properties to these tissues. Unfortunately, properties for normal and tumor tissues are different between patients. To retrieve these patient-specific tissue properties, we recently applied the contrast source inversion (CSI) method to 3T MR scanner data and successfully retrieved the desired tissue properties. The current project is dedicated to extending the CSI-MRI method to 1.5T scans taken during MR guided hyperthermia and will be carried out in close cooperation with the Hyperthermia Unit of the Daniel den Hoed Cancer Center in Rotterdam, the Netherlands.

Requirements

The actual M.Sc. assignment will take place in consultation with the M.Sc. candidate. A solid background in mathematics and basic electromagnetics is required and knowledge of Matlab is preferred.

Contact

dr.ir. Rob Remis

Terahertz Sensing Group

Department of Microelectronics

Last modified: 2019-10-21