Patent ID: 7805201

Claim:
An apparatus for selectively destroying dividing cells in living tissue, the dividing cells having polarizable or polar intracellular members, the apparatus comprising: a first electrode having a first surface configured for placement against the living tissue, the first electrode having a first conductor that is electrically insulated from the first surface; a second electrode having a second surface configured for placement against the living tissue, the second electrode having a second conductor that is electrically insulated from the second surface; and an alternating voltage source for applying an alternating electric potential across the first and second conductors so that an electric field is produced in the living tissue, wherein passage of the electric field through the dividing cells in late anaphase or telophase transforms the electric field into a non-homogenous electric field that produces an increased density electric field in a region of a cleavage furrow of the dividing cells, and wherein the electric field has amplitude and frequency characteristics such that long-term application of the electric field causes the destruction of cells as they divide, but wherein the electric field is sufficiently small so that during long-term application of the electric field, the destruction of the dividing cells is not caused by heat.