TRACKABLE IMPLANTABLE SENSOR DEVICES, SYSTEMS, AND RELATED METHODS OF OPERATION

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to implantable sensor devices and related systems and methods.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Radiation therapy is used to treat localized cancers or other conditions. Examples of radiation therapy treatments include conventional external beam radiation therapy, as well as three-dimensional conformal external beam radiation, intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT), a “gamma knife” that employs a highly focused gamma ray radiation obtained from crossing or collimating several radiation beams, stereotactic radiosurgery and brachytherapy.

The efficacy of the radiation treatment can depend on the total dose of radiation delivered to the target region. However, the amount of radiation effectively delivered to the target region (as well as the amount delivered to healthy tissue) can vary from a desired or planned amount. The variation can be particularly problematic when radiation therapy is used on deep tumors, when the therapy is delivered to tumors located close to healthy sensitive regions or organs, and/or when complex beam shapes are employed.

Typically, the radiation therapy is directed not only to the known tumor location, but also to healthy tissue proximate the tumor based on a treatment margin. Unfortunately, to compensate for the potential for imprecise radiation delivery, the planned treatment margin may be increased. As radiation can be detrimental to healthy tissue, a therapy goal should be to use smaller treatment margins while delivering radiation doses in the planned amounts and to the planned location. However, delivering external beam radiation doses in the desired dose amount to the actual tumor treatment site can be complicated as the tumor and/or markers used to locate and guide the radiation therapy may shift over time, either during or between radiation sessions.

For example, tumor motion can occur during the active delivery of the radiation due to normal biophysical actions. That is, in certain locations in the body, such as in the prostate, movement of target tissue may occur during radiation treatment, primarily attributable to the patient's breathing or filling and/or voiding of the bladder. Thus, dynamic changes in the position of the tumor during active radiation delivery can increase the potential of collateral damage to healthy or non-targeted tissue.

In the past, systems using positional markers have been proposed to determine spatial positioning information for targets from within a patient's body. Such localization may be used to direct or guide the radiation therapies. For example, ACCULOC® is an image-guided localization system that includes both hardware and software to provide localization based on implanted gold markers for an internal reference system. ACCULOC® employs gold spheres as bone markers in cranial and spinal applications, and cylindrical gold markers for soft tissue applications that can be inserted using a needle. These markers may be visible on standard port films as well as electronic portal imaging devices (EPID). Other procedures may also benefit from acquiring spatial knowledge during administration of a therapy to focus external energies to a desired targeted internal location, such as ultrasonic radiation treatments, microwave or RF ablation therapies, and localized ultrasonic or light activation of drugs.

Accordingly, there remains a need for improved or alternate techniques for providing localization data for target regions.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to some embodiments of the present invention, an implantable biocompatible sensor unit includes a sensor body comprising a biocompatible material and having at least one sensor element configured for in vivo placement proximate a tumor treatment site. The sensor element is configured to provide data corresponding to treatment of the tumor treatment site. The sensor unit further includes a transmitter coil and associated electronic components within the sensor body configured for wireless transmittal of the data to a spatially remote receiver. In addition, the sensor unit includes a high-atomic weight member within the sensor body that is configured to be detectable by an imaging modality. The sensor unit is configured to be inductively powered to wirelessly transmit the data to the remote receiver while remaining implanted proximate the tumor treatment site.

According to other embodiments of the present invention, a medical system for patients undergoing treatment for cancer includes at least one wireless implanted sensor unit configured for in vivo placement proximate a tumor treatment site, and an external reader configured to inductively power the at least one sensor unit. The sensor unit includes a high-atomic weight member held in a biocompatible housing. The high-atomic weight member is configured to be visualized as a fiducial marker by an imaging modality. The sensor unit is configured to provide data including at least one sensed internal parameter, and is configured to be inductively powered to wirelessly transmit the data. The external reader is configured to receive the data from the at least one sensor unit, and the system is configured to dynamically monitor selected in vivo parameters associated with one or more of dose and/or processing of a therapy administered to the tumor treatment site based on the data from the at least one sensor unit.

According to further embodiments of the present invention, a method for treating a patient for cancer includes positioning at least one wireless sensor unit including at least one sensor element and a high-atomic weight member in the body of the patient proximate a tumor treatment site. A position of the sensor unit proximate to the tumor treatment site is determined using an imaging modality based on the high-atomic weight member. A radiation therapy is administered to the patient based on the determined position, and a signal is detected in vivo from the at least one sensor unit corresponding to the dose of the administered therapy proximate the tumor treatment site. Administration of the radiation therapy is also dynamically adjusted responsive to changes in the determined position.

Advantageously, the systems, methods, and devices of the present invention can act as positional markers and may monitor, in real time and/or dynamically, radiation dose, fluorescence, temperature, and/or specific indices associated with tumor physiology or other desired internal parameters to affirm therapeutic treatments. Embodiments of the present invention may be particularly suitable for oncology applications.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a front view of an implantable sensor unit in a cylindrical housing according to embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a side perspective view of a system including an implantable sensor unit that can define a positional marker and sense one or more internal parameters of interest according to some embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a partial top view of internal components of an implantable sensor unit that is both a positional marker and a sensor for one or more internal parameters of interest according to some embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 4A is a partial top view of internal components of an implantable sensor unit that is both a positional marker and a sensor for one or more internal parameters of interest according to other embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 4B is a partial end view of the implantable sensor unit of FIG. 4A.

FIGS. 5 to 8 are partial top views of implantable sensor units that is both a positional marker and a sensor for one or more internal parameters of interest according to further embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a schematic illustration of a medical imaging system that can detect an implantable sensor unit as a positional marker and a sensor configured to sense one or more internal parameters of interest according to some embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a block diagram of a data processing system and/or computer modules according to embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a block diagram of operations that may be used to carry out spatial positioning and radiation dose evaluations according to embodiments of the invention.

FIG. 12 is a schematic illustration of an imaging display including real-time gradient dose radiation data relative to spatial location of an internal tumor treatment site according to some embodiments of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION

The present invention now will be described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which embodiments of the invention are shown. This invention may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein; rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art. Like numbers refer to like elements throughout. In the drawings, like numbers refer to like elements throughout, and thickness, size and dimensions of some components, lines, or features may be exaggerated for clarity. The order of operations and/or steps illustrated in the figures or recited in the claims are not intended to be limited to the order presented unless stated otherwise.

Certain embodiments of the present invention are directed to operations that determine the in situ location of implanted sensor units that are adapted to detect, at sufficient intervals, one or more parameters, such as radiation received internally to a target tumor treatment site and/or to non-targeted healthy tissue or sensitive sites. The radiation doses may be delivered by an external beam therapy system. The target site may be any internal region undergoing analysis or therapy, and may be a site associated with tumors such as cancerous tissue. That is, the target site may be a localized cancerous tumor or a site where the tumor has been excised. As such, the excision site and/or tissue proximate thereto may be the target site. In certain embodiments, non-target sites may also be monitored for selected internal parameters or conditions. In particular embodiments, sensitive or non-target sites may be monitored to detect radiation dose received thereat, as desired. The radiation dose may be detected using additional implanted sensor units and/or disposable externally mounted radiation sensor patches. For additional discussion of suitable disposable (typically single-use) external radiation sensor patches, see co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/303,591, filed Nov. 25, 2002, the contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference as if recited in full herein.

Fiducial markers may be used to help align the patient and compensate for patient motion during external beam radiation therapy. Since many linear accelerators (LINACs) may not have the capability to image using diagnostic x-ray, it may be difficult to locate an implanted sensor unit, due to a lack of significant contrast with the surrounding soft tissue. Accordingly, in some embodiments of the present invention, a high-atomic weight material, such as gold, is added to the sensor unit (for example, in the form of a gold wire coil or clip). Some advantages of the use of a high-atomic weight member in an implantable sensor unit may include improved visualization on MV (mega voltage) images obtained during radiation therapy. For example, a sensor unit may be visible with relatively high contrast on diagnostic x-ray and/or CT images (at energies between about 80-120 kVp). However, during radiation therapy, port films may be acquired using the treatment beam, which may usually be between about 6 MV and about 18 MV, and the sensor unit may not be as visible at these energies. Accordingly, when a high atomic weight material, such as gold, is added to the sensor unit, the sensor unit may be imaged with improved contrast during radiation therapy in relation to the surrounding tissue, and can be used to align the patient and/or compensate for patient motion through continuous tracking.

As such, the sensor units and methods of the present invention can be useful in many applications, such as, for example, pulmonary, gastrointestinal, neuroscience and pre-clinical research. Nonetheless, the present invention is believed to have particular importance and suitability for in vivo treatment of cancer.

In certain embodiments, the sensor units can be implanted relatively deep in the body of the subject and may remain in the body for a 1-8 week period or even longer in order to provide in vivo evaluation and monitoring of tumors prior to, during, and subsequent to an active treatment, and preferably over an entire treatment regime or period. As such, the internal in situ sensors of the present invention are preferably configured to be biocompatible and provide a service life suitable for episodic treatment evaluation of at least about 1-8 weeks, whether exposed to radiation, chemotherapy, heat or ionic electric fields (such as the treatment provided by a Thermotron® system) directed to the tumor. Additional description of suitable sensor units is found in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,402,689, 7,010,304, and 7,011,814, and in pending U.S. patent application Ser. Nos. 10/551,366 and 10/779,907, the disclosures of which are incorporated by reference herein in their entireties. The sensor units are configured with internally mounted electronics that wirelessly communicate with an external reader. The sensor units can be configured as a miniaturized elongate (medical grade glass encapsulated or suitable aluminosilicate material) sensor body having a length of about 25 mm or less and a width of about 3 mm or less implantable via a trocar. More particularly, in some embodiments, the sensor body may have a length of about 20 mm and a width of about 2.1 mm. The sensor body itself may be radio-opaque and/or may use radio-opaque coatings for visibility on CT or X-ray scans.

The sensor units can be configured as radiation sensors that can be used to detect, confirm, or verify irradiation doses delivered during photon irradiation treatment (cumulatively, typically in the range of between about 3000-6000 cGy, with each treatment optionally being increments of the total, such as 150-500 cGy). Thus, use of a radiation sensor during real time delivery can help control a more precise delivery dose of radiation to the tumor treatment site. Data regarding the distribution of dose within the tumor following irradiation and/or verification of a calculated or planned dose, may be particularly of interest as complex beam shaping, high dose conformal therapy, or beams at oblique angles may not consistently deliver the planned dose. In certain embodiments, the sensor units may be β radiation monitors used to monitor radioactively labeled compounds, drug uptake and/or utilization, blood flow in the tumor, sensitivity to specific drugs, drug distribution, labeled-glucose (or bio-constituent or metabolite thereof) or another analyte of interest in various locations or organs (as well as cell proliferation as discussed above).

Patients according to the present invention can be any animal subject, and are preferably mammalian subjects (e.g., humans, canines, felines, bovines, caprines, ovines, equines, rodents, porcines, and/or lagomorphs), and more preferably are human subjects.

The present invention is described herein with reference to flowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams of operations, methods and computer program products according to embodiments of the invention. It will be understood that each block of the flowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams, and combinations of blocks in the flowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams, can be implemented by computer program instructions. These computer program instructions may be provided to a processor of a general purpose computer, special purpose computer, embedded processor or other programmable data processing apparatus to produce a machine, such that the instructions, which execute via the processor of the computer or other programmable data processing apparatus, create means for implementing the functions specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram block or blocks.

These computer program instructions may also be stored in a computer-readable memory that can direct a computer or other programmable data processing apparatus to function in a particular manner, such that the instructions stored in the computer-readable memory produce an article of manufacture including instruction means which implement the function specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram block or blocks.

The computer program instructions may also be loaded onto a computer or other programmable data processing apparatus to cause a series of operational steps to be performed on the computer or other programmable apparatus to produce a computer implemented process such that the instructions which execute on the computer or other programmable apparatus provide steps for implementing the functions specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram block or blocks.

As will be appreciated by one of skill in the art, the present invention may be embodied as a system, method, data or signal processing system, or computer program product. Accordingly, the present invention may take the form of an embodiment combining software and hardware aspects. Furthermore, the present invention may, in part, take the form of a computer program product on a computer-usable storage medium having computer-usable program code means embodied in the medium. Any suitable computer readable medium may be utilized including hard disks, CD-ROMs, optical storage devices, or magnetic storage devices.

The computer-usable or computer-readable medium may be, for example but not limited to, an electronic, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor system, apparatus, device, or propagation medium. More specific examples (a non-exhaustive list) of the computer-readable medium would include the following: an electrical connection having one or more wires, a portable computer diskette, a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM or Flash memory), an optical fiber, and a portable compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM). Note that the computer-usable or computer-readable medium could even be paper or another suitable medium, upon which the program is printed, as the program can be electronically captured, via, for instance, optical scanning of the paper or other medium, then compiled, interpreted or otherwise processed in a suitable manner if necessary, and then stored in a computer memory.

Computer program code for carrying out operations of the present invention may be written in an object oriented programming language such as Java7, Smalltalk or C++. However, the computer program code for carrying out operations of the present invention may also be written in conventional procedural programming languages, such as the “C” programming language or even assembly language. The program code may execute entirely on the user's computer, partly on the user's computer, as a stand-alone software package, partly on the user's computer and partly on a remote computer or entirely on the remote computer. In the latter scenario, the remote computer may be connected to the user's computer through a local area network (LAN) or a wide area network (WAN), or the connection may be made to an external computer (for example, through the Internet using an Internet Service Provider).

The flowcharts and block diagrams used herein illustrate systems and/or operations that can be used to obtain and/or analyze localization data for telemetric (wirelessly operated) implantable sensor units. The analysis of the localization and a data can be carried out to provide real-time data on spatial location (i.e., movement) of a tumor during active delivery of a therapy such as, but not limited to, external beam radiation therapy. This spatial data can be interfaced with a delivery system to control the delivery of the therapy based on the spatial location of the tumor. For example, the spatial data can be used with a radiation (external beam) therapy system to thereby control, direct, guide, and/or gate (gate meaning direct the “on” or “off” of a radiation beam transmitted into the body) during an external beam radiation therapy session.

The flowcharts and block diagrams used herein also illustrate systems and/or operations that telemetrically obtain and/or analyze data associated with radiation measurements from the telemetric implantable sensor units. In this regard, each block in the flow charts or block diagrams represents a module, segment, or portion of code, which comprises one or more executable instructions for implementing the specified logical function(s). It should also be noted that in some alternative implementations, the functions noted in the blocks may occur out of the order noted in the figures. For example, two blocks shown in succession may be executed substantially concurrently or the blocks may sometimes be executed in the reverse order, depending upon the functionality involved.

Unless otherwise defined, all terms (including technical and scientific terms) used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs. It will be further understood that terms, such as those defined in commonly used dictionaries, should be interpreted as having a meaning that is consistent with their meaning in the context of the relevant art and/or the present specification and will not be interpreted in an idealized or overly formal sense unless expressly so defined herein.

FIGS. 1-12 illustrate devices, systems, methods and computer program products of embodiments of the present invention that provide implantable sensor units that can be implanted in the body to act as fiducial markers which are detectable using a desired imaging modality, such as, but not limited to, MRI, CT, MV, X-ray, RF, ultrasound, and/or other means that provide images of spatial location. As such, the sensor units can be a positional marker and can detect predetermined parameters in vivo. For example, the sensor units can be configured to detect changes of selected parameters associated with a delivered radiation dose. More particularly, the sensor units may be configured to guide and/or determine delivered external beam radiation dose(s) relative to the location of a target tumor treatment site, for example, to compensate for patient motion.

Turning now to the figures, FIG. 1 illustrates an implantable sensor unit 10. The sensor unit 10 can be surgically implanted in an area of interest in a patient's body and may be telemetrically operated. More particularly, the sensor unit 10 includes electronics 10e and antenna or transmitter coil 110 formed of a high-atomic weight element and configured to allow wireless communication to an external reader. In some embodiments, the sensor unit 10 includes one or more sensor elements configured to sense radiation and, as such, may also include a RADFET that operates with a threshold voltage “Vth” shift that is proportional to absorbed radiation dose. In certain embodiments, at least one, and typically a plurality of the implanted sensor units 10 can be configured to monitor fluorescence, radiation dose, and/or temperature. As such, the sensor 10 can include a RADFET, an optical detector and light source, and/or a digital temperature sensor as the sensor elements. For example, the temperature data and/or radiation dose data can be used to help administer hyperthermia/radiation combination therapies. The sensor unit 10 may also be inductively powered via the internal transmitter coil 110.

As shown in FIG. 1, the sensor unit 10 is cylindrically shaped and sized for injection into the body of a patient. The electronics 10e includes a PCB and/or IC chip 125, such as an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), oriented to extend a small distance along a length of the body 10b of the sensor unit 10. The coil 110 also cylindrically extends adjacent to a portion of the PCB or IC 125. In the embodiment shown, the PCB 125 is a substrate, such as a ceramic, flexible, or FR4 substrate, and the coil assembly (including the coil 110 and a core material 107) is glued and/or otherwise secured to the PCB 125. Of course, with the use of an IC configuration, this size may be further reduced. The sensor body 10b can be configured to hold a single channel (i.e., one sensor element for a PCB version having a width of about 1.5 mm) or multi-channel (multiple elements, with each channel layed side by side, and typically wider than the single channel version). For example, the sensory body 10b may include an ASIC 125 including four measurement channels—1 temperature, 2 RADFET channels, and an input voltage measurement channel. The number of measurement channels may not affect the size of the sensor unit 10. The tip 125T of the sensor unit 10 can be configured with a rounded or pointed edge to help facilitate entry into the tumor tissue and/or into tissue adjacent to the tumor tissue.

As mentioned above, the sensor unit 10 includes a high-atomic weight member 110 within the sensor body 10b that can be detected by an imaging modality. As used herein, a “high-atomic weight” member or element may refer to an element (and/or alloys/mixtures thereof) having an atomic weight of greater than about 180 atomic mass units (amu) and having a sufficient radio opacity to provide visual contrast when imaged using an imaging modality such as MV imaging. Examples of such high-atomic weight elements may include gold (Au) and platinum (Pt). As shown in FIG. 1, the high-atomic weight member 110 is provided as part of the transmitter coil. For example, the winding of the transmitter coil 110 may be formed of insulated gold wire. However, in other embodiments, the high-atomic weight member 110 may be provided as a different and/or separate component than the transmitter coil that is included in the housing of the sensor unit 10.

The sensor unit 10 can be held in a hermetically sealed encapsulated housing 10c, such as a glass capsule or other medically suitable material that is substantially impermeable. The sensor unit 10 electronics 10e can, for example, include a microprocessor controller that controls data acquisition and reader/sensor unit communications that can be mounted on a ceramic substrate. The electronics 10e can include custom chip designs with routings to semiconductor chips provided for data acquisition. For example, the electronics 10e may include an ASIC that includes data acquisition and communications electronics on a single chip. The sensor unit 10 can include a bidirectional antenna. The sensor unit 10 can be configured with digital communication components (such as a digital signal processor) using a 12-16 bit data acquisition that can provide about a 1 mV or less resolution (or better) of the Vth measurement and may operate with a 16-bit CRC error checking capacity. For example, in some embodiments, the sensor unit 10 may include a 14-bit ADC with about 0.26 mV resolution. The electronics 10e can be potted in Class VI USP epoxy and hermetically sealed inside the capsule 10c. The external surface or body of the capsule can be coated with a Parylene C material or other biocompatible coating. The sensor unit can be EO sterilized and adapted to be suitable for chronic in vivo implantation as described. The sensor body itself (or portions of the sensor body) may be radio-opaque for visual contrast in CT scans and port films and the like. Additional description of exemplary sensor unit housing configurations can be found in co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/353,857, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.

FIG. 2 illustrates the sensor unit 10 of FIG. 1 implanted proximate a target site of interest, such as a tumor treatment site 15. In some embodiments, the sensor unit 10 may be sized and configured to be injected to its position proximate the tumor treatment site 15. In operation, the electronics 10c and the transmitter coil 110 of the sensor unit 10 provide wireless communication with an external reader 30 using RF signals 30s to relay data associated with at least one internal parameter of interest that is sensed via a sensor element 105. The sensor unit 10 may also be inductively powered by the reader 30. That is, the reader 30 may be configured to act as a transformer to couple and power the internally disposed sensors, as is well known to those of skill in the art. As such, the in situ sensor unit 10 may be self-contained, may have a sufficiently long service life in the body to provide clinically useful chronic information for episodic or chronic treatment decisions, and can be miniaturized without requiring catheters or externally connected wire leads into the sensors and out of the body.

For systems where multiple sensors 10 are used, the external reader 30 can be configured to serially poll each sensor at the same frequency, with each sensor having a unique RF identification data bit or bits allowing identification and individual interrogation. The multiple sensors may be placed adjacent or in tumors or proximate normal or non-targeted tissue or organs. Such placement can be selected to allow for external monitoring of doses received proximate sensitive and/or non-targeted sites, such as the thyroid, heart, or proximate the tumor or targeted treatment region.

The sensor unit 10 further includes at least one high-atomic weight member 110 that is configured to be detected by an imaging modality (not shown), such as MV, CT, X-ray, and/or other means that provide images of spatial location. For example, the high-atomic weight member may be gold (Au) and/or platinum (Pt). As shown in FIG. 2, the high-atomic weight member 110 is provided as a transmitter coil wound with insulated gold wire. However, the high-atomic weight member may be provided as a separate component from the coil in some embodiments, as will be discussed in greater detail below.

A spatial data processor 20 may be configured to determine the position and/or orientation of the sensor based on detection of the high-atomic weight member 110 via the imaging modality. In some embodiments, the external reader 30 and the spatial data processor 20 may be housed in the same primary housing unit and/or may share the same or portions of the same data or computer processing system. In other embodiments, the external reader 30 and the spatial data processor 20 may be separate units held in different housings. For example, the external reader 30 may be included in a radiation dose reader, a separate reader, and/or a combined reader, while the spatial data processor 20 may be included in the imaging modality.

For additional description of the sensor unit 10 and reader 30, see U.S. Pat. No. 6,402,689 and co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/127,207; the contents of these documents are hereby incorporated by reference as if recited in full herein. Suitable sensor units and telemetric readers may be provided by the DVS® system available from Sicel Technologies, Inc., located in Morrisville, N C. For example, in some embodiments, the sensor unit 10 may be a miniature DVS® sensor manufactured by Sicel Technologies, Inc. The sensor unit 10 may have dimensions of about 20 mm×2.1 mm, and may be configured to pinpoint the tumor treatment site 15 during a patient's treatment cycle and also to measure the amount of radiation received at or proximate to the tumor treatment site 15. Accordingly, sensor units according to some embodiments of the present invention may facilitate the visualization of tumor localization and provide actual dose information at the tumor location, which may be beneficial to accuracy in providing radiation therapy treatment.

FIG. 3 is a partial top view illustrating the internal components of an example implantable sensor unit where the high-atomic weight member 110 is provided as a transmitter coil. The transmitter coil 110 is thus detectable as a fiducial marker in images generated using an imaging modality, such as CT, X-ray, and/or megavolt (MV) radiation therapy. More particularly, as shown in FIG. 3, the coil 110 is wound with insulated gold wire to surround a core material 107, such as a ferrite core, and is glued or otherwise secured adjacent an end portion of the PCB 125. In some embodiments, the core 107 may not overlap with the PCB 125. Since the gold wire has a higher atomic weight than conventional copper wire, it is more radio opaque, and thus provides better contrast when imaged with high energy X-rays and/or other imaging modalities. By including the high-atomic weight member 110 in the transmitter coil, a location-trackable sensor unit may be fabricated according to some embodiments of the present invention without the use of additional components. However, since copper and/or other materials may be better conductors than gold, the read range (i.e., the distance between the external reader 30 of FIG. 2 and the implanted sensor unit 10) may be slightly reduced with the gold coil design. For example, the read range for a sensor unit 10 including a gold coil may be about 11 cm or less, as compared to a read range of about 12-14 cm or less for a sensor unit including a conventional copper coil.

Still referring to FIG. 3, at least one sensor element 105 is provided at an end portion of the PCB 125 opposite the coil 110. For example, the sensor element 105 may be configured to detect beta, photon, and/or gamma radiation used in radiation therapies. In addition, the sensor element 105 may be configured to detect fluorescence at predetermined wavelengths of interest, for example, as exhibited by therapeutic antibodies used in cancer treatment. A minimum distance 108 may be maintained between the coil 110 and the sensor element 105 to inhibit and/or prevent secondary electron scattering off the coil 110, which may affect calibration of the sensor element 105. The calibration process may somewhat compensate for scattering; however, since scattering is a function of photon beam energy, the dose response energy dependency of the sensor element 105 may increase based on the proximity of the coil 110. As such, the coil 110 may not be placed directly adjacent to the sensor element 105. For example, the sensor element 105 and the coil 110 may be axially spaced apart by a distance of about 9 mm in some embodiments.

FIG. 4A is a partial top view illustrating the internal components of an example implantable sensor unit including high-atomic weight members according to other embodiments of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 4A, the high-atomic weight member 110 of the sensor unit 10 is provided as a substantially cylindrical clip surrounding an end portion of the core 107 of the coil 10a. For example, in some embodiments, the clip 110 may be formed of gold and/or other high-atomic weight material. Providing the high-atomic weight member 110 as a clip (rather than as the coil 110 illustrated in FIG. 3) may offer improved read range performance for use with an external reader (such as the reader 30 of FIG. 2), as the transmitter coil 10a may be formed of copper and/or other elements having a higher conductivity than gold. The transmitter coil 10a may also have a reduced length l₂and an increased diameter d₂(as compared to the length l₁and the diameter d₁of the coil 110 of FIG. 3) such that the clip 110 and the coil 10a may occupy a substantially similar portion of the sensor unit 10 while maintaining a desired coupling strength for the coil 10a. For example, where the sensor unit 10 is a Sicel Technologies DVS® sensor, the maximum diameter d₂may be about 1.68 mm, based on the size of the capsule (10c of FIG. 1). The clip 110 may be sized similarly to conventional gold markers to provide compatibility with existing software localization products and/or imaging modalities. Also, as discussed with respect to the embodiments of FIG. 3, at least one sensor element 105 is provided at the opposite end of the PCB 125. As such, the distance 108 between the sensor element 105 and the clip 110 may be maximized, which may reduce the effects of secondary electron scattering on the sensor element 105.

FIG. 4B is a partial end view of the implantable sensor unit 10 of FIG. 4A. As shown in FIG. 4B, the clip 110 snugly resides against a portion of a substantially cylindrical antenna core 107. The core 107 also extends at least partially through the coil 10a. The clip 110 further includes an axially extending gap hog that separates long edges 10e of the clip 110 from each other. The gap 110g is sufficient to prevent an electrical connection between the long edges 10e of the clip 110, which may create a shorted turn around the antenna core 107. Such a shorted turn may reduce the effective electromagnetic coupling between the coil 10a and a reader antenna. As such, the gap 110g may be filled with a non-conductive material. For example, in some embodiments, the gap 110g may be filled with a gas, such as air. In addition, the gap 110g may be filled with an insulator, such as rubber or plastic.

FIG. 5 is a partial top view illustrating the internal components of an example implantable sensor unit according to further embodiments of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 5, the high-atomic weight member 110 of the sensor unit 10 is provided as a clip surrounding a portion of the PCB 125 between the transmitter coil 10a and the sensor element 105. The coil 10a may be wound with copper wire to surround an end portion of the PCB 125, and the sensor element 105 may be provided at an end portion of the PCB 125 opposite the coil 10a. The clip 110 and the sensor element 105 may be axially spaced apart by a distance 108 that is sufficient to reduce and/or prevent secondary electron scattering off the gold clip 110 from affecting calibration of the sensor element 105. For example, the sensor element 105 and the clip 110 may be axially separated by a distance of about 9 mm in some embodiments.

FIGS. 6-8 are partial top views illustrating the internal components of example implantable sensor units including multiple high-atomic weight members according to still further embodiments of the present invention. More particularly, as shown in FIG. 6, the sensor unit 10 includes two high-atomic weight members, shown as clip 110a and coil 110b, axially spaced apart from one another along the core 107. For example, one or both of the coil 110b and the clip 110a may be formed of gold and/or other high-atomic weight material. As such, the coil 110b and the clip 110a may both be detected as fiducial markers by an imaging modality. The detection of two axially-spaced apart points of the sensor unit 10 may be used to define a line representing a present orientation of the implanted sensor unit 10 inside the patient's body. For example, a spatial data processor, such as the spatial data processor 20 of FIG. 2, may be configured to define an orientation of the sensor body 10b using positional data derived from detection of the coil 110b and the clip 110a. A sufficient axial spacing 109 may be provided between the coil 110b and the clip 110a for the spatial data processor to define the orientation of the sensor body. Also, the coil 110b and a sensor element 105 at an end of the PCB 125 may be axially spaced apart by a distance 108 that is sufficient to reduce and/or prevent secondary electron scattering off the coil 110b from affecting calibration of the sensor element 105.

FIG. 7 illustrates a sensor unit 10 including two axially spaced apart high-atomic weight members, again shown as clip 110a and coil 110b, and two sensor elements 105a and 105b at opposite ends of the sensor body. In particular embodiments, the sensor unit 10 includes a clip 110a adjacent a sensor element 105a at a first end of the sensor body, and a coil 110b adjacent a sensor element 105b at a second end of the sensor body. The PCB includes first and second portions 125a and 125b secured to opposite ends of the coil 110b. The clip 110a surrounds at least a part of the first portion of the PCB 125a, and does not include a gap between edges thereof. One or both of the coil 110b and the clip 110a may be formed of gold and/or other high-atomic weight material. As discussed above, the distance 108a between the clip 110a and the sensor element 105a and the distance 108b between the coil 110b and the sensor element 105b may be sufficient to reduce and/or prevent secondary electron scattering off the clip 110a and the coil 110b from affecting calibration of the sensor elements 105a and 105b, respectively.

Still referring to FIG. 7, the sensor elements 105a and 105b may respectively provide signals to an external reader (such as the reader 30 of FIG. 2). For example, the signals may include data corresponding to a radiation dose administered proximate the location of the sensor elements 105a and 105b. An axial spacing 109 may be also provided between the coil 110b and the clip 110a that is sufficient for a spatial data processor (such as the spatial data processor 20 of FIG. 2) to define the orientation of the sensor body. As such, based on the signals from the sensor elements 105a and 105b and the orientation of the sensor body, a radiation dose gradient measurement may be defined. The radiation dose gradient measurement may indicate the relative amounts of radiation being delivered proximate to the tumor treatment site based on two or more dose measurements.

FIG. 8 illustrates a sensor unit 10 including two high-atomic weight members, shown as two clips 110a and 110b, adjacent two sensor elements 105a and 105b at opposite ends of the sensor body. A copper transmitter coil 10a is provided between the clips 110a and 110b. The signals from the sensor elements 105a and 105b and the orientation of the sensor body as determined from detection of the two axially-spaced apart clips 110a and 110b may be used to define a radiation dose gradient measurement in a manner similar to that described above with reference to FIG. 7.

Although illustrated above in FIGS. 3-8 with reference to specific sensor configurations, it is to be understood that embodiments of the present invention may include any configuration having one or more high-atomic weight members in an implantable sensor unit that is configured to sense at least one internal parameter of interest.

FIG. 9 illustrates a medical system 100 for obtaining intra-body data for least one sensed internal parameter as well as positional data that may be used as a therapy guide system according to some embodiments of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 9, in certain embodiments, the patient may be positioned in an imaging system 15. In certain particular embodiments, the imaging system 15 may be a computed tomography (CT) system. Suitable radiation treatment systems for use with the medical system 100 include, but are not limited to, three-dimensional conformal external beam radiation, intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT), a “gamma knife” that employs a highly focused gamma ray radiation obtained from crossing or collimating several radiation beams, stereotactic radiosurgery and brachytherapy systems.

Referring to FIG. 9, the system 100 includes a spatial data processor 20, one or more implanted telemetric sensor units (shown as two units 10₁, 10₂), and an external reader 30 configured to receive wireless transmissions corresponding to data for at least one sensed internal parameter from the implanted sensor units 10. The sensor units 10₁and 10₂may be similar and configuration and/or function to one or more of the sensor units 10 of FIGS. 1-8. As such, the sensor units 10₁and 10₂each include at least one high-atomic weight member configured to be detected by the imaging system 15. The system 100 can also include a primary housing 100h. The housing 100h may include user input controls and a display or other communication means as desired (not shown).

As illustrated in FIG. 9, the reader 30 inductively powers one or more of the implanted sensor units 10. As such, the sensor units 10 wirelessly transmit data corresponding to at least one sensed internal parameter to the reader 30. For example, the sensor units 10 may wirelessly transmit data associated with the dose and/or processing of a therapy administered to a tumor treatment site proximate to the implanted sensor units 10. In addition, the high-atomic weight members included in the sensor units 10 are detectable as fiducial markers by the imaging system 15. As such, the spatial data processor 20 may determine positional and/or orientation data for the sensor units 10 using spatial data derived from detection of the sensor units 10 by the imaging system 15. For example, the positional data and the dosing data for the sensors 10 can be used with a radiation therapy system to control the delivery of an external radiation beam into the body during an external beam radiation therapy session.

In certain embodiments, the system 100 can be configured to individually selectively (serially) poll, address, and/or interrogate a selected implanted sensor unit 10. The sensor units 10 can be configured to operate or wirelessly communicate with the reader 30 at the same frequency. The read range between the external reader 30 and the implanted sensor units 10 may be between about 5 cm-15 cm, and is typically less than about 12 cm, depending on the particular configuration of the sensor units 10. For example, the read range for a sensor unit 10 including a gold coil may be about 11 cm or less, as compared to a read range of about 12-14 cm or less for a sensor unit including a conventional copper coil. Also, the sensor units 10 may be implanted at least 3 cm deep. To control and/or identify which of the sensor units 10 are in active communication mode, a single or multi-bit identifier can be communicated to the reader 30 by the sensor units 10 in the data stream. For example, in some embodiments, each sensor unit 10 includes a unique 32-bit identifier, and the reader 30 addresses each sensor unit 10 using this identifier.

FIG. 10 is a block diagram of exemplary embodiments of data processing systems that include a computation module 350 in accordance with embodiments of the present invention. The processor 310 communicates with the memory 314 via an address/data bus 348. The processor 310 can be any commercially available or custom microprocessor. The memory 314 is representative of the overall hierarchy of memory devices containing the software and data used to implement the functionality of the data processing system 305. The memory 314 can include, but is not limited to, the following types of devices: cache, ROM, PROM, EPROM, EEPROM, flash memory, SRAM, and DRAM.

As shown in FIG. 10, the memory 314 may include several categories of software and data used in the data processing system 305: the operating system 352; the application programs 354; the input/output (I/O) device drivers 358; a computation module 350; and the data 356. The data 356 may include signal data 362 which may be obtained directly from the implanted sensor unit(s). The computation module 350 includes computer program code that determines a spatial location of at least one implanted sensor unit based on detection of a high-atomic weight member therein by an imaging modality, and evaluates at least one internal selected parameter based on the signal data 362 provided by the at least one implanted sensor unit.

In certain embodiments, the selected internal parameter is radiation dose detected by the at least one implanted sensor unit. For example, where the sensor unit includes two axially spaced apart high-atomic weight members 110a and 110b (for instance, as illustrated in FIG. 7), the computation module 350 may determine an orientation of the sensor unit based on a line defined by the two detected high-atomic weight elements. Moreover, using the detected radiation dose from two sensor elements in the implanted sensor unit, the computation module 350 may determine a radiation dose gradient measurement based on the orientation of the sensor unit relative to the tumor treatment site. Accordingly, the computation module 350 can be used during delivery of focused therapies, such as radiation therapies, and can include real-time spatial data feedback that can identify whether the target tumor is moving and dynamically control the intensity and/or direction of delivery of the therapies and/or dynamically adjust patient location during delivery of the therapies based on movement of the tumor to correctly align the patient and the beam. More particularly, the processor 310 may communicate with an external beam radiation therapy delivery system 320 to adjust delivery of the radiation therapy based on the spatial location(s) determined by the computation module 350.

As will be appreciated by those of skill in the art, the operating system 352 may be any operating system suitable for use with a data processing system, such as OS/2, AIX or OS/390 from International Business Machines Corporation, Armonk, N.Y., WindowsCE, WindowsNT, Windows95, Windows98, Windows2000, WindowsXP or Windows XT from Microsoft Corporation, Redmond, Wash., PalmOS from Palm, Inc., MacOS from Apple Computer, UNIX, FreeBSD, or Linux, proprietary operating systems or dedicated operating systems, for example, for embedded data processing systems.

The I/O device drivers 358 typically include software routines accessed through the operating system 352 by the application programs 354 to communicate with devices such as I/O data port(s), data storage 356 and certain memory 314 components and/or the image acquisition system 320. The application programs 354 are illustrative of the programs that implement the various features of the data processing system 305 and preferably include at least one application that supports operations according to embodiments of the present invention. Finally, the data 356 represents the static and dynamic data used by the application programs 354, the operating system 352, the I/O device drivers 358, and other software programs that may reside in the memory 314.

The I/O data port(s) can be used to transfer information between the data processing system and another computer system or a network (e.g., the Internet) or to other devices controlled by the processor. These components may be conventional components such as those used in many conventional data processing systems, which may be configured in accordance with the present invention to operate as described herein.

While the present invention is illustrated, for example, with reference to the computation module 350 being an application program in FIG. 10, as will be appreciated by those of skill in the art, other configurations may also be utilized while still benefiting from the teachings of the present invention. For example, the module 350 may also be incorporated into the operating system 352, the I/O device drivers 358 or other such logical division of the data processing system 305. Thus, the present invention should not be construed as limited to the configuration of FIG. 10, but is intended to encompass any configuration capable of carrying out the operations described herein.

FIG. 11 illustrates operations for treating a patient for cancer that can be carried out according to embodiments of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 11, at least one wireless sensor unit is positioned in the body of a patient proximate a tumor treatment site (block 1100). The wireless sensor unit includes one or more sensor elements configured to provide data corresponding to at least one sensed internal parameter. The wireless sensor unit also includes at least one member or component formed of a high-atomic weight element, such as gold and/or platinum. For example, the high-atomic weight member may be provided as a clip within the sensor unit and/or as part of the transmitter coil of the sensor unit that is used to wirelessly transmit the data corresponding to the sensed internal parameter(s). Accordingly, a position of the sensor unit is detected using an imaging modality based on the presence of the high-atomic weight member (block 1110). For example, the high-atomic weight member may be detected as a fiducial marker in images generated using computed tomography (CT), megavolt (MV) radiation therapy, and/or other imaging modalities. A therapy is administered to the patient based on the detected position of the high-atomic weight member (block 1120). For example, the therapy may be radiation delivered by an external beam radiation therapy system. The intensity and/or direction of delivery of the therapy may also be dynamically adjusted based on the detected position of the sensor unit (which may indicate movement of the tumor) to correctly align the patient and the beam.

A signal corresponding to the dose and/or processing of the administered therapy proximate to the tumor treatment site is detected in vivo from the at least one sensor unit (block 1130). For example, as discussed above, the sensor unit may include first and second to sensor elements in opposing ends thereof and may be configured to transmit a signal indicating the dose of radiation delivered to each sensor element. The signal(s) from the sensor unit(s) are relayed to a location external of the patient's body (block 1140). For example, the signals may be relayed to an external reader, such as the reader 30 of FIG. 2, which may be part of a cancer therapy system, such as the system 100 of FIG. 9. Administration of the therapy may also be dynamically adjusted responsive to changes in the determined position of the sensor unit to thereby improve the dose and/or processing of the therapy (block 1150). The system 100 may also be configured to define a radiation dose gradient measurement based on the signals from the first and second sensor elements and the detected position of the sensor unit.

FIG. 12 illustrates an imaging display that provides real-time gradient dose radiation data relative to the spatial location of an internal tumor treatment site according to some embodiments of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 12, two sensor units 10₁and 10₂are implanted proximate a tumor treatment site 1215 in the body of a patient. Each of the sensor units 10₁and 10₂includes a pair of axially spaced apart high-atomic weight members 110 having a sufficient opacity to provide visual contrast when imaged using an imaging modality. Accordingly, the high-atomic weight members 110 are visible on an imaging display 1205 associated with the imaging modality. The orientations of each of the sensor units 10₁and 10₂may be determined from the lines X and Y defined by the pairs of high-atomic weight members 110 in the sensors 10₁and 10₂, respectively. As such, when a radiation therapy is administered to the patient, radiation dose gradient measurements may be determined based on the orientations of the sensors 10₁and 10₂relative to the tumor treatment site 1215 and detected radiation doses from sensor elements in the implanted sensor units 10₁and 10₂, as discussed above. An actual treatment dose 1220 provided to the tumor treatment site may thereby be determined based on the radiation dose gradient measurements, and may be compared to a planned treatment dose 1210. As such, if the actual treatment dose 1220 varies from the planned treatment dose 1210, patient setup and/or treatment planning may be altered and/or re-evaluated. Also, as discussed above, delivery of a radiation therapy may be dynamically adjusted based on the orientations of the sensor units 10₁and 10₂provided by the imaging display 1205 as detected during radiation therapy to align the patient and the radiation beam to provide the planned treatment dose 1210 to the tumor treatment site 1215.

The foregoing is illustrative of the present invention and is not to be construed as limiting thereof. Although a few exemplary embodiments of this invention have been described, those skilled in the art will readily appreciate that many modifications are possible in the exemplary embodiments without materially departing from the novel teachings and advantages of this invention. Accordingly, all such modifications are intended to be included within the scope of this invention as defined in the claims. In the claims, means-plus-function clauses are intended to cover the structures described herein as performing the recited function and not only structural equivalents but also equivalent structures. Therefore, it is to be understood that the foregoing is illustrative of the present invention and is not to be construed as limited to the specific embodiments disclosed, and that modifications to the disclosed embodiments, as well as other embodiments, are intended to be included within the scope of the appended claims. The invention is defined by the following claims, with equivalents of the claims to be included therein.

TRACKABLE IMPLANTABLE SENSOR DEVICES, SYSTEMS, AND RELATED METHODS OF OPERATION

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