Patent ID: 7942870

Claim:
A method for sharply delimiting a cryoablation volume when cryoablating a selected cryoablation target in the body of a patient, comprising (a) defining a three-dimensional shape as a border of a cryoablation target; (b) inserting into said patient a plurality of probes each comprising at least one treatment module probe which comprises at least two treatment modules independently controllable to operate simultaneously at different temperatures; (c) positioning said probes so that a first set of said treatment modules is adjacent to said defined shaped border and interior to said selected cryoablation target, and a second set of said treatment modules is adjacent to said defined shaped border and exterior to said selected cryoablation target; (d) cooling said first set of treatment modules to cryoablation temperatures, thereby cryoablating tissues within said cryoablation target and adjacent to said border; and (e) heating said second set of treatment modules during said cooling of said first set of treatment modules, thereby creating a sharp temperature gradient at a vicinity of said shaped border of said cryoablation target, and simultaneously operating two of the at least two treatment modules of the multi-module probe at different temperatures, thereby sharply delimiting said cryoablation volume.