Last year, the FDA cleared ViaCirQ to market the machine, which the company calls ThermoChem HT System. The system raises the temperature of the intraperitoneal area to a maximum of 109.4 degrees Fahrenheit by continuously bathing the region with sterile solution. This Friday, ViaCirQ will introduce its ThermoChem HT System at the 54th Annual Cancer Symposium of the Society of Surgical Oncology in Washington, where more than 1,000 surgical oncologists and general surgeons are expected to attend. After surgery to remove as much of the cancer as possible, patients are connected to a series of tubes and a pumping device bathes the abdominal cavity for several hours using powerful cancer drugs. The method permits direct contact of very high cancer drug concentrations with remaining cancer cells.
Heating increases the effectiveness of the interaction.
The method was developed by Brian Loggie M.D., a surgical oncologist, and Ronald Fleming, Pharm. Previous studies have proven intraperitoneal therapy to be effective in ovarian cancer. It is hopeful that intraperitoneal heated chemotherapy at the time of surgery will improve its efficacy. Inc. All rights reserved.