JP2009125257A - Hyperthermia apparatus and hyperthermia method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a hyperthermia apparatus capable of killing cancer cells efficiently while reducing burdens on a living body. <P>SOLUTION: The hyperthermia apparatus includes: a heating means for heating an lesion by radiating electromagnetic waves non-invasively the lesion of the living body; a permittivity detecting means for detecting permittivity of the living body by irradiating the electromagnetic waves to the living body non-invasively; and a control unit for adjusting output of the heating means on the basis of an amount of change in permittivity of the lesion of the living body. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a thermotherapy device and a thermotherapy method for heating an affected area of a living body.

There is a thermotherapy called hyperthermia as a cancer treatment.
In this hyperthermia method, cancer cells have higher acidity than normal cells and are less susceptible to heat than normal cells, and blood vessels in areas formed with cancer cells rise in temperature unlike normal blood vessels However, since it does not spread, it is a method of killing cancer cells by heating the affected area, taking advantage of the fact that even if it is heated, it cannot sufficiently dissipate heat and tends to become high temperature.

In hyperthermia using such a hyperthermia method, an area with cancer cells (hereinafter referred to as “affected part”) is identified in advance by image diagnosis such as X-ray and MRI, and at least according to the size and quantity of the affected part. There is a method in which one or more needle-shaped temperature sensors are inserted into the affected area, and the affected area is heated to a temperature within the target region while controlling the amount of heating based on the detection result of the needle-shaped temperature sensor. Here, as a method for heating the affected part, there is a method of irradiating the affected part with electromagnetic waves and heating it.
However, when a needle-like temperature sensor is inserted into an affected area and temperature measurement is performed, there is a problem that a burden such as pain on a living body (patient) increases. Also, when measuring temperature by inserting multiple needle-shaped temperature sensors and / or measuring temperature for a long time in order to grasp the temperature distribution and measure the temperature of multiple affected areas There is also a problem that the burden on the living body is further increased.
In addition, when electromagnetic waves are used for the heating means, the electromagnetic waves radiated for heating become noise of the detection signal of the temperature sensor of the temperature detection means, and accurate temperature detection is difficult. For this reason, there is also a problem that the needle-like temperature sensor (probe) inserted into the living body absorbs electromagnetic waves and reduces the heating efficiency.

As a thermotherapy device that solves this problem, for example, there is a thermotherapy device that detects the temperature of an affected area in a non-invasive manner in a living body described in Patent Literature 1 and Patent Literature 2.
Patent Document 1 describes a thermal treatment device that warms a living body by bringing an applicator that has an antenna built into the distal end thereof into contact with the living body and radiates a heating wave from the antenna at the distal end. Has been.
Further, in cited document 2, at least one burn prevention temperature sensor different from the heating temperature sensor for detecting the temperature to be heated is disposed at a position different from the heating temperature sensor, and the burn prevention temperature is set. When it is detected that the measured temperature of the sensor is in a dangerous temperature range, the microwave output from the microwave oscillation unit is controlled so that the measured temperature of the temperature sensor for preventing burns leaves the dangerous temperature range. A microwave thermotherapy device to be controlled is described.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 07-185018 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 06-31814

As described in Cited Documents 1 and 2, by measuring the temperature in a non-invasive state in the living body, it is possible to reduce the burden on the living body during the thermal treatment.
Here, in the thermotherapy apparatus, the affected part is heated for a preset time (for example, 30 minutes to 1 hour) while measuring the temperature.

  However, because the characteristics of cancer cells differ from living body to living body, that is, depending on the location where the cancer cells are made and the individual patient, there are tissue differences and individual differences. Cancer cells may not have been killed even when heated to a temperature that has reached a certain time, or cancer cells may have been killed even if the temperature has not reached a certain time at which the cancer cells can be killed . In addition, even when cancer cells have already been killed, they may be continuously heated up to a set time.

In addition, in the method of heating the affected area by irradiating electromagnetic waves, the epidermis between the heating means and the affected area and normal cells around the affected area are heated to a temperature higher than the temperature of the affected area, and the normal cells die. (46 ° C or higher) may be reached. When the temperature is increased to a temperature at which normal cells between the heating means and the affected part die, the heated part becomes a burn or the like, causing pain in the living body, that is, the patient, and placing a burden on the patient. Become. For this reason, when pain occurs in the patient, the affected area cannot be sufficiently heated, or the heating is stopped before reaching a certain time, so that the cancer cells cannot be killed.
Furthermore, even if the affected area is heated to a set temperature while measuring the temperature, it is difficult to keep the temperature of the affected area constant, and cancer cells cannot be killed efficiently.

  An object of the present invention is to provide a thermotherapy device and a thermotherapy method that can eliminate the problems based on the above-described conventional technology and efficiently kill cancer cells while reducing the burden on the living body.

  In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention is directed to non-invasively irradiating an affected part of a living body with electromagnetic waves, heating means for heating the affected part, non-invasively irradiating electromagnetic waves to the living body, and A thermotherapy apparatus comprising: a dielectric constant detection means for detecting a rate; and a control section for adjusting an output of the heating means based on a change amount of a dielectric constant of the affected part of the living body. It is.

Here, it is preferable that the control unit stops heating by the heating unit when detecting that the amount of change in dielectric constant of the affected part exceeds a threshold value.
The threshold value is preferably the difference between the dielectric constant of cells having a high water content and the dielectric constant of cells having a low water content.

And a correction unit that corrects a detection value of the dielectric constant detection unit based on a dielectric constant of the reference dielectric detected by the dielectric constant detection unit. Is preferred.
The reference dielectric is preferably disposed in contact with the dielectric constant detecting means.
It is preferable that the dielectric constant detection means irradiates a chirp pulse type or UWB type electromagnetic wave to detect a dielectric constant of the affected part.

Furthermore, it has a reflected electromagnetic wave detecting means for detecting the intensity of the electromagnetic wave irradiated from the heating means and reflected by the skin of the living body, and the control unit is configured to detect the intensity of the electromagnetic wave radiated from the heating means and the reflection. It is preferable that the heating means emits an electromagnetic wave having an intensity that is a difference between the intensity of the electromagnetic wave reflected by the skin of the living body and detected by the electromagnetic wave detection means.
Furthermore, it has temperature calculation means for calculating the temperature of the living body from the dielectric constant of the living body detected by the dielectric constant detection means, and the control unit is based on the temperature of the living body calculated by the temperature calculation means, It is preferable to adjust the intensity of the electromagnetic wave radiated from the heating means so that the temperature of the affected area becomes a set temperature.

  In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides a thermal treatment method for irradiating an affected part of a living body with electromagnetic waves and heating the affected part, irradiating the living body with electromagnetic waves non-invasively, and The dielectric constant detection step for detecting the rate and the change amount of the dielectric constant of the affected part detected in the dielectric constant detection step and the threshold value were compared, and the change amount of the dielectric constant of the affected part exceeded the threshold value In this case, the present invention provides a thermotherapy method characterized by including an output switching step for terminating irradiation of electromagnetic waves.

Furthermore, it is preferable to have an affected part specifying step for specifying the position of the affected part.
Moreover, it is preferable that the said affected part identification step specifies the position of the said affected part based on the dielectric constant of the said biological body.
Further, it is preferable that the output switching step terminates the irradiation of electromagnetic waves when the time for heating the living body exceeds a set time.
In the output switching step, it is preferable that the irradiation of the electromagnetic wave is terminated when the integrated value of the electric energy output by the electromagnetic wave exceeds a set amount.

The dielectric constant detecting step further detects a dielectric constant of a peripheral portion of the affected part, and the output switching step compares a change amount of a dielectric constant of the peripheral part of the affected part with a threshold value, and the affected part When the change amount of the dielectric constant in the peripheral part of the substrate exceeds the threshold value, it is preferable to end the irradiation of the electromagnetic wave.
Further, the dielectric constant detection step further detects a dielectric constant of the skin of the living body, and the output switching step compares a change amount of the dielectric constant of the epidermis with a threshold value to determine a dielectric constant of the skin. When the amount of change exceeds the threshold value, it is preferable to end the irradiation of electromagnetic waves.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to warm an affected area of a living body while detecting whether or not cancer cells have been killed. Thereby, cancer cells can be killed efficiently while reducing the burden on the living body.

  A thermotherapy device and a thermotherapy method according to the present invention will be described in detail based on embodiments shown in the accompanying drawings.

  FIG. 1 (A) is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a hyperthermia system 10 which is an embodiment of the thermotherapy device of the present invention, and FIG. 1 (B) shows a hyperthermia system 10 shown in FIG. 1 (A). FIG. 2 is an enlarged side view showing an enlarged peripheral portion of the living body B, FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a heating means of the hyperthermia system shown in FIG. 1, and FIG. 3 is a heating shown in FIG. FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a schematic configuration of an array antenna of a temperature detecting means of the hyperthermia system shown in FIG. 1, and FIG. 5 is a hyperthermia shown in FIG. It is a block diagram which shows schematic structure of the temperature detection means of a system.

A hyperthermia system 10 shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B is a system that heats an affected part T by irradiating the affected part T of a living body (that is, a subject, a patient) B with a microwave. A heating means 12 for irradiating a wave, a dielectric constant detection means 14 for detecting the dielectric constant of the living body of the affected part T, and a control unit 16 for adjusting the output of the heating means 12 based on the detection result of the dielectric constant detection means 14 And an input display means 18 for displaying detection results and inputting various conditions.
Here, the affected part T is a cancer cell. Further, in the present embodiment, the affected part T is one place, but the affected part T can be heated by the same operation even when the affected part T has a plurality of places.

Hereinafter, each part of the hyperthermia system 10 will be described in detail.
First, the heating means 12 is basically disposed on the outer periphery of the living body B facing the affected part T, and generates and outputs an electromagnetic wave, and the electromagnetic wave output from the output unit 22 is directed to the living body B. The output terminal 20 that radiates, the bolus 36 that is disposed between the output terminal 20 and the living body B and uniformly spreads the electromagnetic waves output from the output terminal 20, and the cooling unit 38 that cools the bolus 36 are included. In addition, the arrangement | positioning position of the heating means 12 (especially output terminal 20) is not limited to the outer periphery of the biological body B, You may arrange | position to the front surface, side surface, and back surface of the biological body B.

The output unit 22 includes an oscillating unit 30, an isolator 31, a directional coupler 32, power meters 33 a and 33 b, attenuators 34 a and 34 b, and a matching circuit 35.
The oscillation unit 30 generates a microwave, amplifies it, and outputs it.
The microwave output from the oscillating unit 30 passes through the isolator 31, the directional coupler 32, and the matching circuit 35 and is supplied to the output terminal 20.

  The isolator 31 is a non-reciprocal transmission circuit element that allows microwaves in the direction from the oscillating unit 30 to the directional coupler 32 to pass and does not allow microwaves in the direction from the directional coupler 32 to the oscillating unit 30 to pass. A wave is prevented from flowing to the oscillation unit 30 side.

  The directional coupler 32 supplies a part of the microwave output from the oscillating unit 30 to the wattmeter 33a and the attenuator 34a. After being emitted from the output terminal 20, the directional coupler 32 is reflected by the epidermis of the living body and is again output. A part of the microwave input to 20 is supplied to the wattmeter 33b and the attenuator 34b. The microwaves supplied from the directional coupler 32 to the wattmeter 33a and the attenuator 34a or the wattmeter 33b and the attenuator 34b are a certain percentage of the input microwaves.

The wattmeter 33 a and the attenuator 34 a calculate the power of the microwave supplied from the directional coupler 32, thereby detecting the intensity of the microwave output from the oscillating unit 30 and transmitting it to the control unit 16.
Further, the wattmeter 33 b and the attenuator 34 b calculate the power of the microwave supplied from the directional coupler 32, thereby detecting the intensity of the microwave reflected by the skin and transmitting it to the control unit 16.

  The matching circuit 35 is disposed between the directional coupler 32 and the output terminal 20 and performs impedance matching between the oscillation unit 30 (that is, the power supply side) and the living body (that is, the load side).

The output terminal 20 is a microstrip type applicator and is disposed to face the living body B, and includes a coaxial connector 100, a grounding unit 102, a dielectric substrate 104, and an antenna 106 as shown in FIG.
The coaxial connector 100 supplies the microwave supplied from the output unit 22 to the antenna 106.
In addition, the ground portion 102, the dielectric substrate 104, and the antenna 106 are laminated in this order from the coaxial connector 100 side, the ground portion 102, the dielectric substrate 104, and the antenna 106.
The dielectric substrate 104 is a thin flat dielectric having a thickness of several mm.
The ground unit 102 and the antenna 106 are thin metal plates and are arranged so as to sandwich the dielectric substrate 104 therebetween. The ground unit 102 is grounded, and the antenna 106 is connected to the coaxial connector 100.
Thus, by making the output terminal 20 into a thin plate shape, it can be made flexible, and the area can be increased and a wide range can be heated.

The bolus 36 is a waveguide type applicator and is inserted between the living body B and the output terminal 20. The bolus 36 uniformly transmits the microwave output from the output terminal 20 to the living body B.
Further, the cooling unit 38 is a cooling mechanism that cools the surface of the bolus 36.
By cooling the surface of the bolus 36 by the cooling unit 38, the living body B in the area in contact with the bolus 36 can be cooled, and the living body (particularly the epidermis) in the area in contact with the bolus 36 is overheated. , Can prevent burns.

  The heating means 12 outputs a microwave from the oscillation unit 30 of the output unit 22 and outputs the microwave to the output terminal 20 via the directional coupler 32 and the matching circuit 35. The output terminal 20 supplies the microwave supplied from the output unit 22 to the antenna 106 from the coaxial connector 100 and warms the living body B.

  The dielectric constant detection means 14 is arranged so that the affected part T is sandwiched between the outer circumferences of the living body B, and generates array antennas 24a and 24b that transmit and receive microwaves, and microwaves that are transmitted by the array antennas 24a and 24b, and the array antenna 24a. , 24b and the microwave control analysis unit 26 for analyzing the received microwave, and the living body including the affected part T based on the characteristic that the reflection / transmission characteristic of the radio wave changes due to the change of the attenuation constant (dielectric constant). The microwave transmitted and reflected through B is measured, and the dielectric constant of each part of the living body B including the affected part T is calculated from the measurement result.

  The array antenna 24a and the array antenna 24b are arranged at positions facing each other across the living body B. Here, since the array antenna 24a and the array antenna 24b have the same shape and configuration, the array antenna 24a will be described below as a representative.

As shown in FIG. 3, the array antenna 24 a has a plate-like base 40 having a circular cross section and a surface area larger than the cross section of the temperature measurement region, and a plurality of ( In this embodiment, it has m × n antenna elements 42.
In addition, the plurality of antenna elements 42 are arranged on the base material 40 at equal intervals with a distance of at least half the wavelength of the microwave to be transmitted.

  The antenna element 42 is a microwave transmission antenna 44 that emits microwaves toward the living body B (hereinafter also simply referred to as “transmission antenna 44”), and a microwave reception that receives microwaves that have passed through the living body B. One antenna 46 (hereinafter also simply referred to as “receiving antenna 46”) is provided.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 5, the microwave control analyzer 26 basically scans the living body (subject) with a chirp pulse generator 48 that generates a chirp pulse microwave. The transmission side multiplexer 54 that selectively switches the transmission antenna 44 that transmits microwaves, the reception side multiplexer 56 that selectively switches the reception antenna 46 that receives microwaves, and the beat between the transmitted microwave and the received microwave A band-pass filter 62 that extracts signals, an FFT analyzer 64 that selectively extracts frequency components corresponding to microwaves that travel straight between the transmitting antenna 44 and the receiving antenna 46 that transmit and receive microwaves from the beat signal, and the extracted beat signals. Three-dimensional image data representing the three-dimensional relative permittivity distribution in the living body B from the frequency component. And a three-dimensional image data generating circuit 66 which generates a.

  The chirp pulse generator 48 sweeps a microwave in a frequency band of several GHz according to time at a specified sweep frequency, and generates a chirp pulse microwave (hereinafter simply referred to as “microwave”). The microwave generated by the chirp pulse generator 48 is distributed to the amplifier 52 and the mixer 60 by the distributor 50. That is, the same microwave is input from the distributor 50 to the amplifier 52 and the mixer 60.

The amplifier 52 amplifies the microwave input from the distributor 50 with a predetermined amplification factor and outputs the amplified microwave to the transmission side multiplexer 54.
The transmission-side multiplexer 54 selectively switches one transmission antenna 44 that radiates microwaves among the 2m × n transmission antennas 44. Specifically, the transmission-side multiplexer 54 receives microwaves from the transmission antenna 44 of an arbitrary antenna element 42 at the top of the curved surface of the base material 30 of the array antenna 24a (that is, the position closest to the head). Next, microwaves are radiated from the transmitting antenna 44 of the antenna element 42 adjacent to the antenna element 42. In this way, the transmission antennas 44 that radiate microwaves are sequentially selected and switched one by one from the 2m transmission antennas 44 in the circumferential direction of the array antenna 24a and the array antenna 24b. Thereafter, microwaves are sequentially radiated from the transmitting antennas 44 in the same manner for the antenna element 42 in the second stage from the top in the axial direction of the curved surface of the base material 30 of the array antenna 24a. This is also performed for the element, and this is repeated n times in the axial direction.

  Next, a reception side multiplexer 56 having the same function as the transmission side multiplexer 54 is connected to the reception antenna 33. The reception side multiplexer 56 is selected by the transmission side multiplexer 54 out of the 2m × n reception antennas 46 so that the reception antenna 46 arranged at a position facing the transmission antenna 44 that radiates microwaves is selected. Switch. That is, the microwave radiated from the transmission antenna 44 is partially transmitted through the body of the living body B as indicated by a dotted arrow, and is received by the reception antenna 46 disposed at a position facing the transmission antenna 44 that radiates the microwave. Received.

The amplifier 58 amplifies the microwave received by the reception antenna 46 selected by the reception side multiplexer 56 with a predetermined amplification factor, and outputs the amplified microwave to the mixer 60.
The mixer 60 multiplies the microwave input (transmitted) from the distributor 50 and the microwave input (transmitted) from the amplifier 58 and outputs the result to the band pass filter 62.
The band pass filter 62 selectively extracts a beat signal between the microwave input from the distributor 50 and the microwave input from the amplifier 62.

  The FFT analyzer 64 performs spectrum analysis using the fast Fourier transform on the beat signal extracted by the band pass filter 62. The FFT analyzer 64 selectively extracts only a frequency component having a time delay corresponding to the microwave that travels straight between the transmitting antenna 44 and the receiving antenna 46 that transmit and receive the microwave, from the beat signal. Thereby, the diffracted wave and the reflected wave having a time delay different from the time delay by a predetermined time are removed from the beat signal, and only the substantially straight wave component can be extracted. In other words, the microwave can be treated as a linearly propagating beam such as an X-ray.

  Data taken out by the FFT analyzer 64 (hereinafter also referred to as “one-dimensional image data”) is a value obtained by integrating the one-dimensional microwave attenuation between the transmitting antenna 44 and the receiving antenna 46 that transmit and receive microwaves. ing. The amount of attenuation of the microwave is determined by the electrical conductivity and relative dielectric constant of the object (in this case, the body of the living body B). Therefore, by analyzing the attenuation amount of the microwave, it is possible to know the relative permittivity distribution of the object, and it can be imaged by converting the change in relative permittivity into a color gradation value and expressing it. .

  The three-dimensional image generation circuit 66 generates the three-dimensional image data of the relative permittivity distribution from the one-dimensional image data of the relative permittivity distribution based on the well-known image reconstruction method and volume rendering method used in X-ray CT and the like. To do. Specifically, the three-dimensional image generation circuit 66 first applies an image reconstruction method and uses the array antennas 24a, 24b based on 2m one-dimensional image data extending in the circumferential direction of the array antennas 24a, 24b. Two-dimensional image data representing a two-dimensional permittivity distribution in a plane orthogonal to the axial direction is obtained.

  Since two antenna elements 42 are arranged in the axial direction, n pieces of two-dimensional image data are obtained. The two-dimensional image data represents a tomographic image obtained by cutting a living body between the transmission antenna 44 and the reception antenna 46 on a plane orthogonal to the axial direction of the array antennas 24a and 24b.

  The three-dimensional image generation circuit 66 calculates three-dimensional image data from n pieces of two-dimensional image data while performing pixel interpolation between adjacent two-dimensional image data by a volume rendering method. That is, the three-dimensional image data of the relative permittivity distribution is calculated by stacking n tomographic images represented by the two-dimensional image data in the axial direction of the array antennas 24a and 24b.

As described above, the dielectric constant detection unit 14 irradiates the living body B with the microwave of the chirp pulse and detects the relative permittivity distribution in the living body B.
Here, since the spatial resolution of the relative permittivity by the chirped pulse microwave is several mm, the permittivity of the affected part can be detected with high accuracy by measuring as in the present embodiment.

The control unit 16 adjusts the output of the heating unit 12 based on the set heating condition and the dielectric constant of the affected part T detected by the dielectric constant detection unit 14, that is, the dielectric constant of cancer cells.
Specifically, if it is detected that the amount of change in the dielectric constant of the detected affected area T exceeds the threshold value, it is determined that the cancer cell has been killed, and microwave irradiation from the heating means 12 is stopped, Finish heating.

Here, the relationship between cancer cells and dielectric constant will be described.
FIG. 6 (A) is a graph showing the relationship between the dielectric constant and temperature in water, and FIG. 6 (B) shows a high water content tissue (high water content cell) and a low water content tissue (low water content). It is a graph which shows the relationship between the dielectric constant about (cell), and a measurement frequency. In the graph shown in FIG. 6A, the vertical axis is a dielectric constant, and the horizontal axis is temperature. In the graph shown in FIG. 6B, the ordinate represents the relative dielectric constant, and the abscissa represents the frequency.
As shown in FIG. 6A, since the temperature and the dielectric constant are in a substantially proportional relationship, when the affected part T is heated, the dielectric constant gradually changes at a constant rate. FIG. 6A shows the relationship between the dielectric constant and temperature in water, but since a living body is basically composed of water, the same tendency applies to cancer cells and normal cells in the living body. Have
Next, as shown in FIG. 6B, the relative dielectric constant is greatly different between the highly hydrous tissue and the low hydrous tissue. Here, examples of the highly hydrous tissue include organs containing a lot of blood, such as blood, muscle, heart, etc., which are tissues composed of water, and examples of the low hydrous tissue include bones, which are tissues with little water. And fat are exemplified. When these tissues were measured with a microwave of 2.45 GHz and the relative permittivity of air was 1, the relative permittivity of blood was 58.2 and the relative permittivity of muscle was 54.4. The relative permittivity of the heart was 50, the relative permittivity of the bone was 38.8, and the relative permittivity of fat was 5.28. The relative dielectric constant of the skin (skin) was 37.9. The measurement results are shown in Table 1 below. Note that this measurement result is an example, and the relative relationship is the same, but the value of the relative permittivity varies depending on the measurement condition and the reference.

Here, when the cancer cells are heated and die, the properties of the cells change. Specifically, unlike normal tissues (cells), cancer cells are formed only by blood vessels that are suddenly extended from the surrounding blood vessels. Incomplete state. In other words, a cancer cell is a blood vessel made of cells. Therefore, cancer cells do not have a function of adjusting blood flow by expanding or contracting blood vessels according to the ambient temperature. Therefore, when heated, only a portion of the cancer cell maintains a high temperature, and the cell or cell wall is broken.
When cancer cells are heated and killed, the cells are broken, fluid is fluidized, and changes from a highly hydrous tissue to a low hydrous tissue. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 6B, when the cancer cell dies, the relative permittivity changes greatly. The change at the time of cell death as shown in FIG. 6 (B) is much larger than the change due to the temperature of the cell as shown in FIG. Can do.

  Based on the above-described relationship, the control unit 16 sets the difference between the dielectric constant of the surviving cancer cells and the dielectric constant of the dead cancer cells as a threshold value, and the cancer cells are killed from the change in the dielectric constant of the affected part T. Detect whether or not.

Further, the control unit 16 also detects the temperature from the dielectric constant of the living body detected based on the relationship shown in FIG. 6A, and adjusts the output of the heating means 12 based on the detected temperature of the living body.
For example, if the one treatment (that is, the time for warming the living body) is about 30 minutes, the control unit 16 increases the temperature of the affected part T to the set temperature in about 10 minutes, and then the set temperature for 20 minutes. To maintain. Here, the control unit 16 controls the output of the heating unit 12 by PID control (for example, feedback control) or feedforward control based on the temperature calculated from the dielectric constant of the affected part T detected by the dielectric constant detection unit 14. The temperature of the affected area T is controlled by controlling the amount of heating of the affected area T. The set temperature may be a temperature range having a range (width) of 1 ° C. to several ° C.

The display input unit 18 is a PC (personal computer) having a display unit for displaying a screen and an input unit through which an operator can input conditions, and is connected to the control unit 16.
The display input unit 18 displays each part of the living body detected by the dielectric constant detection unit 14, specifically, the temperature distribution of the affected part and its peripheral part, and various conditions. The display input unit 18 also includes a heating time (treatment time) input from the input unit, a threshold value, an upper limit value and a lower limit value of the affected part temperature, a set temperature, and a location of the affected part (a region to be heated). Is transmitted to the control unit 16.

The hyperthermia system 10 of this embodiment is basically configured as described above.
Next, the operation of the hyperthermia system 10 will be described to explain the thermotherapy device and the thermotherapy method of the present invention in more detail.

  FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing an example of the thermal treatment method of the present invention using the hyperthermia system 10 of the present invention. FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing an example of a method for determining the output of the heating means 12 by the control unit 16. FIG.

Hereinafter, a thermotherapy method using the hyperthermia system 10 will be described with reference to FIG.
First, the affected part T in the living body B is detected, and the position of the affected part T is specified (step S10).
For example, if it is found by the examination that cancer cells are present in the living body, the affected part T containing the cancer cells is detected by a close examination such as MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging), PET (Positron Emission Tomography). Further, the position of the affected part T in the living body B is also detected when the affected part T is detected.
Next, the position of the affected part T in the living body B is specified based on the position data detected when the affected part T is detected. Further, the positional relationship between the arrangement positions of the output terminals 20a and 20b, the arrangement positions of the array antennas 24a and 24b, and the position of the living body B so that the affected area T can be irradiated with electromagnetic waves and the dielectric constant of the affected area T can be detected. Then, the output terminal 20, the array antennas 24a and 24b, and the living body B are arranged at the determined positions.

Next, a heating condition is determined (step S12).
Based on various conditions input by the input display means 18, conditions set in the control unit 16 in advance, the position, size, state, etc. of the affected area, the threshold value of the change amount of the dielectric constant of the affected area, and the heating means 12 The time for heating the affected area, the upper limit value, the lower limit value, the set temperature of the affected area temperature, and the heating conditions such as the initial input power, target power, and microwave output are determined.

Next, the dielectric constant of the affected part T is detected (step S14).
Based on the positional information specified in step S10, the dielectric constant detecting means 14 detects the dielectric constant of the affected part T. Here, the dielectric constant detection means 14 transmits and receives microwaves through the living body as described above, and calculates the dielectric constant of each part of the living body from the detection result. The dielectric constant at the position corresponding to the affected area T is extracted from the calculated dielectric constant of each part of the living body B, and the extracted dielectric constant is used as the dielectric constant of the affected area T.

  Next, based on the heating condition determined in step S12 and the dielectric constant of the affected part T detected in step S14, whether the detected change amount of the dielectric constant of the affected part T exceeds a threshold value (that is, It is determined whether or not the amount of change in the dielectric constant of the affected part T ≦ the threshold value (step S16). Here, the amount of change may be the initial value of the detected dielectric constant, the difference between the initial value and the detected dielectric constant as the amount of change, and the difference between the dielectric constant detected in the previous measurement as the amount of change. Good. Alternatively, a standard human body dielectric data sample may be prepared in advance, and this value may be used as an initial value.

When the amount of change in the dielectric constant of the affected part T is equal to or less than the threshold value, heating control is performed (step S18), and then the process proceeds to step S14. Here, the heating control is to adjust the output of the heating means 12 based on the heating condition and the detected state of the living body B. The heating control will be described later.
If the amount of change in the dielectric constant of the affected part T is larger than the threshold value in step S18, the process is terminated.

  Thus, by detecting the amount of change in the dielectric constant of the affected part T and detecting whether the amount of change exceeds the threshold value, it is possible to reliably detect whether the cancer cell is alive or dead. can do. In addition, if it is detected that the cancer cell has been killed, it is possible to prevent the warming amount of the living body from being heated more than necessary by terminating the processing, and thus the burden on the living body (patient) can be reduced. . In addition, the working time of doctors and engineers and the operating time of the apparatus can be made highly efficient.

Next, an example of the heating control in step S18, that is, an output determination method of the heating means 12 will be described with reference to FIG.
First, it is determined whether the difference between the input power and the reflected power is the target power, that is, whether input power−reflected power = target power (step S32).
Here, the input power is the intensity of the microwave output from the oscillating unit 30, and is a value calculated based on the detection value of the wattmeter 33a. The reflected power is the intensity of the microwave reflected by the skin of the living body, and is a value calculated based on the detection value of the wattmeter 33b. Therefore, the difference between the input power and the reflected power is the intensity of the microwave incident on the living body.

If the input power-reflected power is not equal to the target power, it is determined whether the difference between the input power and the reflected power is smaller than the target power (that is, whether input power-reflected power <target power) (step S32).
If input power-reflected power <target power, the input power is increased (step S34), and the process proceeds to step S30.
If input power-reflected power <not target power, that is, input power-reflected power> target power, the input power is decreased (step S36), and then the process proceeds to step S30.

  Next, in step S30, when input power-reflected power = target power, it is determined whether the detected temperature is equal to the target temperature (that is, detected temperature = target temperature) (step S38).

If the detected temperature is not the target temperature, it is determined whether the detected temperature is lower than the target temperature (that is, whether the detected temperature <the target temperature) (step S40). Here, the detected temperature is the temperature of the affected area calculated based on the dielectric constant.
If the detected temperature is smaller than the target temperature, the target power is increased (step S42), and the process proceeds to step S30.
If the detected temperature is not the target temperature, that is, the detected temperature is higher than the target temperature, the target power is decreased (step S44), and then the process proceeds to step S30.
Next, in step S38, when the detected temperature is equal to the target temperature, the heating control is terminated.

As described above, the heating control is performed, and the affected part T of the living body B is heated to the target temperature by adjusting the output of the microwave from the heating means 12 toward the living body B.
In addition, the input power and reflected power of the microwave are detected, and the intensity of the microwave that is incident on the living body and contributes to the heating of the living body is detected from the difference between the incident power and the reflected power, and based on the detection result. By adjusting the intensity of the input power, the intensity of the microwave contributing to the warming of the living body can be made constant. Thereby, the affected part can be heated with higher accuracy.

In the above embodiment, the temperature of the affected area is calculated from the dielectric constant, and the output of the heating means is adjusted so that the temperature of the affected area becomes the target temperature, but the target dielectric constant is set without detecting the temperature. The output of the heating means may be adjusted so that the dielectric constant of the affected area becomes the target dielectric constant.
In this case, it is preferable to set the dielectric constant in a region where the relationship between the dielectric constant and temperature as shown in FIG.
Moreover, in the said embodiment, although both target electric power and target temperature were set, it is good also as either one. Specifically, only the target power is set, and control control for adjusting the intensity of the microwave so that the intensity of the microwave incident on the living body becomes constant. It is good also as heating control which adjusts the intensity | strength of a microwave so that it may become.

  Here, in the above embodiment, whether or not to end the heating of the affected part is determined based only on the change amount of the dielectric constant of the affected part, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the change of the dielectric constant of the affected part is determined. In addition to the amount, the amount of change in the dielectric constant of the epidermis, the amount of change in the dielectric constant around the affected area, the elapsed time since the start of heating the affected area, etc. May be.

FIG. 9 shows a flowchart of another example of the thermotherapy method using the hyperthermia system 10. In addition, the same step number is attached | subjected to the step similar to the thermotherapy method shown in FIG.
First, the affected part T in the living body B is detected, and the position of the affected part T is specified (step S10).
Next, a heating condition is determined (step S12).

Next, the dielectric constant of the living body is detected (step S50).
Specifically, based on the position information specified in step S10, the dielectric constant of the affected part T is detected by the dielectric constant detection means 14. Here, the dielectric constant detection means 14 transmits and receives microwaves through the living body as described above, and calculates the dielectric constant of each part of the living body from the detection result. From the calculated dielectric constant of each part of the living body B, the position corresponding to the affected part T, the position corresponding to the peripheral part of the affected part T, and the position corresponding to the epidermis of the living body B are extracted. , Dielectric constant of the peripheral portion, and dielectric constant of the skin.

  Next, based on the heating condition determined in step S12 and the dielectric constant of the epidermis detected in step S14, whether the detected change amount of the dielectric constant of the epidermis exceeds a threshold value (that is, epidermis) It is determined whether or not the change amount of the dielectric constant ≦ the threshold value (step S52). Here, the amount of change in dielectric constant is the same as the amount of change in dielectric constant of the affected part described above, with the initial detected dielectric constant as the initial value, and the difference between the initial value and the detected dielectric constant as the amount of change. The difference from the dielectric constant detected in the immediately preceding measurement may be used as the amount of change. The threshold value is preferably set separately for the epidermis, but may be the same threshold value as the affected area.

  If the change amount of the dielectric constant of the skin is larger than the threshold value, the process ends. If the change amount of the dielectric constant of the skin is equal to or less than the threshold value, the process proceeds to step 54.

  Next, based on the heating conditions determined in step S12 and the peripheral dielectric constant detected in step S14, whether the detected change in the peripheral dielectric constant exceeds a threshold value (ie, Then, it is determined whether or not the amount of change in the dielectric constant of the peripheral portion ≦ the threshold value (step S54). Here, the amount of change in the dielectric constant can be set in various manners similar to the amount of change in the dielectric constant of the affected part described above. The threshold value is preferably set separately for the peripheral part, but may be the same threshold value as the affected part or the epidermis.

  If the change amount of the dielectric constant in the peripheral portion is larger than the threshold value, the process is terminated.

  Next, based on the heating condition determined in step S12 and the dielectric constant of the affected part T detected in step S14, whether the detected change amount of the dielectric constant of the affected part T exceeds a threshold (that is, Then, it is determined whether or not the amount of change in the dielectric constant of the affected part T ≦ the threshold value (step S56).

  If the amount of change in the dielectric constant of the affected area T is larger than the threshold value, the process ends. If the amount of change in the dielectric constant of the affected area T is equal to or smaller than the threshold value, the process proceeds to step 58.

Next, it is determined whether the time since the start of heating of the affected part (hereinafter referred to as “elapsed time”) exceeds a threshold value (that is, whether or not the elapsed time ≦ the threshold value) ( Step S58).
If the elapsed time is less than or equal to the threshold value, heating control is performed (step S18), and then the process proceeds to step S50.
If the elapsed time is greater than the threshold value, the process ends.

Thus, based on the amount of change in the dielectric constant of the epidermis, when the amount of change in the dielectric constant of the epidermis exceeds a certain value, the heating of the affected area is stopped, so that the living body's epidermis (normal tissue on the surface of the living body (normal Cell)) damage (for example, burns) can be suppressed. In addition, based on the amount of change in the dielectric constant around the affected area, when the amount of change in the affected area exceeds a certain value, heating of the affected area is stopped, so that normal tissue (normal cells) around the affected area is stopped. Damage can be suppressed.
In the case of living body epidermis and normal cells, the threshold is not limited to the difference in dielectric constant between living and dead cells. The amount of change in rate may be used as a threshold value.

Furthermore, the end timing of the heating of the affected area by the control unit 16 (specifically, the timing of the end of the microwave irradiation), in addition to ending the heating when the above-described death of the cancer cell is detected, What is necessary is just to determine by various methods, for example, to the whole heating time (that is, the time after starting to irradiate the microwave from the heating means 12 in order to heat the affected part T, the treatment time) and the set temperature A method of stopping (ending) the heating by the heating means when the set time has elapsed, and the time when the affected area has reached the set temperature (for example, 45 ° C.) within a certain time (for example, 20 minutes) When the temperature has reached, the heating means 12 stops heating. When the product of the temperature and time that has risen from the reference temperature (a kind of set temperature, for example, steady body temperature) exceeds the specified value, the heating means 12 performs heating. How to end That.
Here, since cancer cells in the affected area T can be effectively necrotic (killed), the time during which the affected area T has been at a constant temperature is a certain time, or the product of the temperature and the temperature that has risen from the reference temperature. It is preferable to heat the affected area until is equal to or greater than a specified value.

  Moreover, in the said embodiment, although temperature was detected from the dielectric constant, you may detect the temperature of each part of a biological body using the temperature sensor which contacts detection objects, such as a thermocouple, and detects temperature. In particular, since the temperature of the epidermis of a living body can be measured non-invasively, it is preferable to use a temperature sensor because the burden on the living body can be reduced.

  Further, in the above embodiment, when the heating time has passed for the set time or more, the processing is finished, that is, the heating of the affected part T is finished. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and as described above, the setting is made. Whether the process is terminated when the set time has elapsed after reaching the temperature, or the process is terminated when the time during which the affected area has reached the set temperature reaches a certain time, the reference temperature The process may be terminated when the product of the temperature and the time increased from the time exceeds a specified value.

Moreover, although the heating means of the said embodiment arrange | positioned the bolus between the output terminal and the biological body, it is not limited to this, It is good also as a structure which makes an output terminal contact a biological body directly.
By directly contacting the output terminal and the living body, the positional relationship between the output terminal and the living body can be easily adjusted, and the irradiated microwave can be efficiently transmitted to the living body.
Moreover, when the bolus is arrange | positioned like the said embodiment, when heating a part with an unevenness | corrugation, it can heat suitably.

Further, the hyperthermia system places a reference dielectric having a known dielectric constant outside the living body, and the dielectric constant detecting means measures the dielectric constant of the reference dielectric, and based on the measurement result and the known dielectric constant, Calibration (calibration) is preferably performed to correct the detection value of the dielectric detection means.
Thus, by providing a reference dielectric and performing calibration, the dielectric constant of each part of the living body can be detected more accurately.

Here, the reference dielectric is preferably arranged in contact with the dielectric constant detection means.
By bringing the reference dielectric and the dielectric constant detection means into contact with each other, calibration of the dielectric constant detection means can be performed with higher accuracy.
The reference dielectric is preferably a printed board, FPC (Flexible printed circuits), or a bolus. By using a printed circuit board, FPC, or bolus as the reference dielectric, it is not necessary to use a new member, which simplifies the device configuration, and because the change in dielectric constant is small, calibration is accurate. It can be performed.
Further, it is also preferable to use saline and FR4 as the reference dielectric.
By using saline or FR4 as the reference dielectric, the dielectric constant of the reference dielectric can be set to a dielectric constant close to or the same as the dielectric constant of a highly hydrous tissue, low hydrous tissue, or cancer cell of a living body. It is possible to perform calibration with higher accuracy.

Here, it is preferable that the thermotherapy device heats the affected part T to 42 ° C. or higher and 44 ° C. or lower.
By setting the temperature of the affected part T within the above range, the effect of the present invention can be more suitably obtained.

Further, in the above embodiment, the temperature of the affected part of the living body is detected in addition to the dielectric constant of the affected part detected by the dielectric constant detecting means 12, but in addition to or instead of the temperature of the affected part of the living body, the affected part T of the living body B is detected. The temperature of the peripheral part (more precisely, normal cells in the peripheral part of the affected part of the living body) A may be detected. In addition, the temperature detection means 12 of the said embodiment can detect the temperature of the peripheral part A of the affected part T by the method similar to the detection of the temperature of the affected part T, and also simultaneously with the detection of the temperature of the affected part T.
As in this embodiment, the apparatus configuration can be simplified by simultaneously detecting the temperature of the affected area and the temperature around the affected area with the same means.

Further, the control unit 16 replaces the temperature of the affected part T of the living body B detected by the temperature detecting unit 12 or, together with the temperature of the affected part T of the living body B, the peripheral part A of the affected part T detected by the temperature detecting unit 12. The output of the magnetism generating means 14 may be adjusted based on the temperature.
For example, the controller 16 calculates the temperature around the affected area T from the detection result of the dielectric constant detecting means 12, and the normal cell temperature around the affected area T is equal to or higher than a specified temperature (for example, 40 ° C.). If detected, the heating means 12 weakens or stops the power output to the oscillating unit 30, weakens the microwave generated by the heating means 12, or stops the generation of microwaves by the heating means 12. .
Thus, the temperature is detected from the dielectric constant of normal cells in the peripheral part A of the affected part T detected by the dielectric constant detection unit 14, and the output of the heating means 12 is adjusted by the control unit 16 based on the detection result, By maintaining normal cells at a temperature lower than a specified temperature (that is, a temperature set by an operator, for example, 40 ° C.), only the cancer cells in the affected part T are heated to a high temperature (for example, about 45 ° C.) without increasing the normal cells. ). Thereby, the cancer cell of an affected part can be killed, without killing a normal cell or putting a burden on a normal cell.
In addition, since the temperature of the affected part and the temperature of the peripheral part can be adjusted more reliably and the normal cells can be killed or cancer cells can be killed without imposing a burden on the normal cells, the dielectric constant detecting means 12 It is preferable that the temperature of both the affected part and the peripheral part is detected from the detected dielectric constant, and the control unit 16 adjusts the output of the heating means 12 based on both temperature detection results.

Moreover, in the said embodiment, based on the detection result of the dielectric constant detection means 14, and the set conditions, the control part 16 automatically outputs the output of the heating means 12, that is, the intensity of the microwave generated by the heating means 14. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the operator may adjust based on the detection result of the dielectric constant detection means 14.
Specifically, first, the detection result of the dielectric constant detection unit 14 is displayed on the display unit of the input display unit 18. Next, the operator determines the strength of the magnetic field generated by the heating means 12 based on the detection result displayed on the display unit, and generates a numerical value of a desired strength, a magnetic field, or stops the generation of the magnetic field. Is input to the input unit of the input display means 18.
And the control part 16 controls the heating means 12 based on the input information.

  Thus, even if the control unit 16 adjusts the output of the heating unit 12 based on the input from the display input unit 18, the output is determined by whether or not the cancer cells of the affected part T have been killed by the dielectric constant detection unit 14. Since it can be adjusted, the cancer cells of the affected area T can be killed without imposing a burden on the living body, and the above effects such as preventing the heating of the affected area T more than necessary can be obtained. .

  As described above, the thermotherapy device and the thermotherapy method according to the present invention have been described in detail. However, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various improvements and modifications can be made without departing from the gist of the present invention. Changes may be made.

  For example, in the present embodiment, a microwave heating method is used in which the affected area of the living body is irradiated with microwaves to heat the affected area, but RF (radio wave) that heats the affected area by applying a high-frequency current to the living body. It is also preferable to use a dielectric heating method or an RF induction heating method in which an induction current is caused to flow in a living body by applying a high-frequency magnetic field to the living body and the affected area is heated by resistance heating. By using a non-invasive method such as a microwave heating method, an RF induction heating method, or an RF induction overheating method, the burden on the living body during heating can be reduced.

In this embodiment, two array antennas are arranged so as to sandwich the living body, and the dielectric constant is detected from the intensity of the microwave transmitted through the living body. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the microwave reflected by the living body is detected. The dielectric constant may be detected from the intensity.
Further, in this embodiment, since the dielectric constant at each position can be detected with high measurement accuracy, a detection means for irradiating the microwave of the chirp pulse and detecting the dielectric constant from the transmitted or reflected microwave output is provided. Although used, it is also preferable to use a method of detecting a dielectric constant by irradiating UWB electromagnetic waves.
The present invention is not limited to these, and any dielectric constant detecting means such as an impedance method can be used as long as the dielectric constant of the living body can be measured without being invasive to the living body.

In the above embodiment, the heating means and the dielectric constant detection means are separate devices, but the affected area may be heated and the dielectric constant detected by a device that emits one electromagnetic wave.
In the present embodiment, microwaves are used as electromagnetic waves. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and electromagnetic waves having various wavelengths such as several MHz band to UHF band, millimeter wave 30 GHz band, and the like can be used.

In the above embodiment, the output terminal of the heating unit and the array antenna of the dielectric constant detection unit are arranged on the outer periphery of the living body. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the output terminal and / or the array antenna may It may be inserted into a luminal organ. By inserting the output terminal and / or array antenna into the lumen together with an endoscope, etc., the output terminal and / or array antenna can be brought closer to the affected area in a non-invasive manner, and the affected area is efficiently heated. And the dielectric constant of the affected area can be detected more accurately.
In this case, it is preferable to cool the output terminal by the cooling unit in order to prevent burns of the luminal mucosa.

(A) is a block diagram which shows schematic structure of the hyperthermia system of one Embodiment of the thermotherapy apparatus of this invention, (B) expands and shows the peripheral part of the biological body of the hyperthermia system shown to (A). It is an enlarged side view. It is a front view which shows schematic structure of the heating means of the hyperthermia system shown in FIG. It is sectional drawing which shows schematic structure of the output terminal of the heating means shown in FIG. It is a perspective view which shows schematic structure of the array antenna of the temperature detection means of the hyperthermia system shown in FIG. It is a block diagram which shows schematic structure of the temperature detection means of the hyperthermia system shown in FIG. (A) is a graph which shows the relationship between a dielectric constant and temperature, (B) is a graph which shows the relationship between a dielectric constant and a measurement frequency. It is a flowchart which shows an example of the thermotherapy method using a hyperthermia system. It is a flowchart which shows an example of operation | movement of a hyperthermia system. It is a flowchart which shows another example of the thermotherapy method using a hyperthermia system.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Hyperthermia system 12 Heating means 14 Dielectric constant detection means 16 Control part 18 Input display means 20 Output terminal 22 Output part 24a, 24b Array antenna 26 Microwave control analysis part 30 Oscillation part 31 Isolator 32 Directional coupler 33a, 33b Electric power Total 34a, 34b Attenuator 35 Matching circuit 36 Bolus 38 Cooling unit 40 Substrate 42 Antenna element 44 Microwave transmission antenna 46 Microwave reception antenna 48 Chirp pulse generator 50 Distributor 52, 58 Amplifier 54 Transmission side multiplexer 56 Reception Side multiplexer 60 Mixer 62 Band pass filter 64 FFT analyzer 66 Three-dimensional data image generation circuit 100 Coaxial connector 102 Grounding part 104 Dielectric substrate 106 Antenna B Living body T Affected part

Claims (15)

Non-invasively irradiating the affected area of the living body with electromagnetic waves, and heating means for heating the affected area;
A dielectric constant detecting means for non-invasively irradiating the living body with electromagnetic waves and detecting a dielectric constant of the biological body;
And a control unit that adjusts an output of the heating means based on a change amount of a dielectric constant of the affected part of the living body.   The thermotherapy apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit stops heating by the heating unit when detecting that the amount of change in dielectric constant of the affected part exceeds a threshold value.   The thermotherapy apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the threshold value is a difference between a dielectric constant of cells having a high water content and a dielectric constant of cells having a low water content. further,
A reference dielectric disposed outside the living body;
The thermotherapy device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising a correction unit that corrects a detection value of the dielectric constant detection unit based on a dielectric constant of a reference dielectric detected by the dielectric constant detection unit.   The thermotherapy apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the reference dielectric is disposed in contact with the dielectric constant detection means.   The thermal treatment apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the dielectric constant detection means detects a dielectric constant of the affected part by irradiating a chirp pulse type or UWB type electromagnetic wave. Furthermore, it has a reflected electromagnetic wave detection means for detecting the intensity of the electromagnetic wave irradiated from the heating means and reflected by the skin of the living body,
The controller is configured to generate an electromagnetic wave having an intensity that is a difference between the intensity of the electromagnetic wave radiated from the heating means and the intensity of the electromagnetic wave reflected from the skin of the living body detected by the reflected electromagnetic wave detection means. The thermotherapy device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the thermotherapy device emits radiation from a heating means. Furthermore, it has a temperature calculation means for calculating the temperature of the living body from the dielectric constant of the living body detected by the dielectric constant detection means,
The said control part adjusts the intensity | strength of the electromagnetic waves radiated | emitted from the said heating means so that the temperature of the said affected part may become preset temperature based on the temperature of the said biological body calculated with the said temperature calculation means. The thermotherapy apparatus in any one. A thermotherapy method of irradiating an affected part of a living body with electromagnetic waves and heating the affected part,
A dielectric constant detecting step for non-invasively irradiating the living body with electromagnetic waves and detecting a dielectric constant of the affected area;
The amount of change in the dielectric constant of the affected area detected in the dielectric constant detection step is compared with a threshold value. If the amount of change in the dielectric constant of the affected area exceeds the threshold value, the output for ending the irradiation of electromagnetic waves A thermotherapy method comprising: a switching step.   The thermotherapy method according to claim 9, further comprising an affected part specifying step of specifying the position of the affected part.   The thermal treatment method according to claim 10, wherein the affected part specifying step specifies a position of the affected part based on a dielectric constant of the living body.   The thermotherapy method according to any one of claims 9 to 11, wherein the output switching step terminates the irradiation of electromagnetic waves when a time for heating the living body exceeds a set time.   The thermotherapy method according to any one of claims 9 to 12, wherein the output switching step ends the irradiation of the electromagnetic wave when an integrated value of the electric energy output by the electromagnetic wave exceeds a set amount. The dielectric constant detection step further detects a dielectric constant of a peripheral portion of the affected area,
In the output switching step, the amount of change in the dielectric constant in the periphery of the affected area is compared with a threshold value. If the amount of change in the dielectric constant in the periphery of the affected area exceeds the threshold value, the electromagnetic wave irradiation is performed. The thermotherapy method according to any one of claims 9 to 13, wherein the method is terminated. The dielectric constant detection step further detects a dielectric constant of the skin of the living body,
The output switching step compares a change amount of the dielectric constant of the skin with a threshold value, and terminates the irradiation of electromagnetic waves when the change amount of the dielectric constant of the skin exceeds the threshold value. The thermotherapy method in any one of -14.

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