Executive Summary : | Meta analysis of randomized clinical trials indicate hyperthermia as an effective adjuvant for radiotherapy treatment of head and neck cancers. Cancer statistics indicate high incidence of head and neck cancers among Indian men and women and 67% of the patients have locoregional clinical disease. Motivated by the clinical evidence and the growing burden of head and neck cancers, we propose to investigate the feasibility of near field microwave PA antenna for hyperthermia treatment (HT) of locoregional head and neck cancers. Targeted tissue heating in human body is challenging as it is a spatially in-homogeneous lossy medium with wide variation in the shape and size of the treatment site, and tissue dielectric and thermal properties. In this work we propose the i) methodology for the design of an improved near field microwave active PA configuration at 434 MHz for head and neck cancers assuming isotropic identical radiators and 3D patient model in the reactive near field, and ii) investigate global optimization techniques for PA synthesis with electronic beam steering and beam shaping capabilities for improved delivery of HT with reduced channel power consumption and reduced number of active antennas. The design of planar near field antenna operating at 434 MHz is also proposed for i) realizing the near field active PA antenna prototype for HT of head and neck cancers, and ii) experimentally verify the capabilities of the proposed PA synthesis algorithms on tissue mimicking phantoms. The technical knowledge and visible outputs from the proposed work will be published in internationally reputed journals. The research outcomes will help translate our laboratory findings and could initiate strong clinical research collaboration with medical colleges and/or hospitals and industry for device development. Other benefits include training of young scientists on product design and functional analysis, engineering optimization techniques, device fabrication processes, and exposure to research methodology and ethics. Besides training, knowledge sharing and technology translation, the learning and outcomes of the proposed research are expected to kindle new ideas and explore new hypothesis for transforming science to engineering. |