Patent ID: 8109925

Claim:
A surgical method comprising: providing an elongate probe and a suction channel extending longitudinally along said probe; inserting a distal end portion of said probe into a breast of a patient so that a distal tip of said probe is in contact with a target fibroid tissue mass inside the patient's breast; after contact of said distal tip with the target fibroid tissue mass inside the patient's breast, ultrasonically vibrating said probe so that said distal tip has an excursion amplitude or distance greater than 275 microns; during the vibrating of said probe, applying suction to said channel at a vacuum level greater than 24″ Hg; maintaining the target fibroid tissue mass in engagement with said distal tip during the vibrating'of said probe by virtue of the application of suction to said channel at a vacuum level greater than 24″ Hg; and ultrasonically ablating at least a selectable portion of the target fibroid tissue mass in response to the vibrating of said probe.