Patent ID: 7166075

Claim:
A method of monitoring destruction of tumorous tissue by RF electrical ablation comprising the steps of: (a) inserting an ablation electrode into an ablation region of the tissue and applying an RF ablation current to the ablation region, the electrode having a shaft and a tip, the tip locatable at the ablation region by piercing the tissue of the ablation region; (b) obtaining a baseline image of the region indicating tissue location; (c) applying compression to the region by manipulation of a portion of the shaft of the probe outside of the tissue to cause motion of the tip in the ablation region; (d) using the compression applied by the tip of the probe to obtain a compression image of the region indicating new tissue locations; and (e) comparing the baseline and compression images to determine displacement of tissue locations between the baseline and compression images; (f) determining a gradient of the displacement of tissue locations to obtain an image indicating elasticity of the tissue in the region such as may demarcate the lesion formed by the RF ablation.