Patent ID: 6640139
Filing Date: 2003-10-28
Classification: A61B,A61F,A61N

Abstract:
A method for protecting non-target tissue structures of a patient's body from unintended damage during thermotherapy treatment of target tissue located adjacent to the non-target tissue structures, said method comprising the steps of:inserting into the patient's body a thermotherapy probe including inner and outer lumens; pumping a heated liquid through the inserted thermotherapy probe for heating the non-target tissue structures in a first treatment mode to a first temperature that is sublethal to the non-target tissue structures but is high enough to provoke the building of heat shock proteins in the non-target tissue structures; positioning an applicator portion of an energy source in at least one of the lumens; and applying radiative energy from the energy source to target tissue for heating the target tissue in a second treatment mode to a second temperature that is high enough to kill a desired cell mass contained in the target tissue.