Speaker
Description
The dielectric properties of human tissues are important to consider in the context of several biomedical applications, such as electrical stimulation, radio frequency hyperthermia, pulsed electric-field based treatment and for the development of numerical models covering those applications. In this work, we present an experimental study of human pancreases, both healthy and tumour-bearing, in the context of electroporation. They are compared to pig samples, to estimate the relevance of this more accessible model in medical studies. The study is organized into two parts:
Firstly, the dielectric properties of the samples were measured through impedance monitoring in a basic planar two-electrode set-up, in order to bring new data to the literature on this underdescribed organ.
Secondly, the same samples were pierced with two needle electrodes, to conform to a real application of an electroporation protocol. The impedance of the sample was measured again in this particular configuration, before and after the application of a classical ESOPE electroporation protocol. The goal is to find a specific marker for in-situ impedance to follow during a treatment, in order to measure the dynamic of the treatment with the repetition of pulses, trough quick mono-frequency measurements between the pulses. The relative variation of phase has been identified as a potential marker, has it presented a maximum at a frequency compatible with a measure between pulses. The first measurements in between pulses on ex vivo samples present a convergence of this marker, possibly making it a good measurement of the completeness of the treatment.
