MXT MAMMARY-TUMOR TREATMENT WITH A HIGH-TEMPERATURE RADIOFREQUENCY ABLATION DEVICE

A special catheter with a deploying needle was used to treat MXT mouse mammary tumors transplanted onto the flanks of B6D2F1 mice. The cathe ter was connected to a radiofrequency generator. Treatment was applied for five minutes, with central tumor temperatures reaching over 100 d egrees C. Histopathological examination revealed extensive localized, reproducible and controlled necrosis of the tumors in animals sacrific ed at days 5 and 15 after treatment. The effectiveness of this device against MXT tumor growth was enhanced when a combination of radiofrequ ency and intraperitoneal chemotherapy (9 injections of adriamycin, eto poside and cyclophosphamide) was administered. This study demonstrates the effectiveness and reproducibility of tumor destruction and the in crease in effectiveness of chemotherapy effects by radiofrequency heat ing.