Mathematical modeling of thermal ablation in tissue surrounding a large vessel.

Thermal ablation of a solid tumor in a tissue with radio-frequency (rf) energy can be accomplished by using a probe inserted into the tissue under the guidance of magnetic resonance imaging. The extent of the ablation can be significantly reduced by heat loss from capillary perfusion and by blood flow in a large vessel in the tissue. A mathematical model is presented of the thermal processes that occur during rf ablation of a tissue near a large blood vessel, which should not be damaged. Temperature distribution dynamics are described by the combination of a 3D bioheat transport in tissue together with a 1D model of convective-dispersive heat transport in the blood vessel. The objective was to determine how much of the tissue can be ablated without damaging the blood vessel. This was achieved by simulating the tissue temperature distribution dynamics and by determining the optimal power inputs so that a maximum temperature increase in the tissue was achieved without inducing tissue damage at the edge of the large vessel. The main contribution of this study is to provide a model analysis for pretreatment and, eventually, for intra-operative application to thermal ablation of a tumor located near a large blood vessel.