Treating patients with TTFields with the electrode positions optimized using deformable templates

An electrotherapeutic treatment device comprising a processor configured to execute instructions stored in one or more memory devices to perform an electrotherapeutic treatment comprising:

• receiving, by the processor, a three-dimensional image of a body area of a patient;
• identifying portions of the image that correspond to abnormal tissue;
• generating a data set corresponding to the image with the abnormal tissue masked out;
• retrieving a model template from the one or more memory devices, wherein the model template specifies positions of a plurality of tissue types in a corresponding body area of a healthy individual that is distinct from the patient;
• deforming the model template in space so that features in the deformed model template line up with corresponding features in the data set;
• modifying portions of the deformed model template that correspond to the masked-out portion of the data set so that the modified portions represent the abnormal tissue;
• generating a model of electrical properties of tissues in the body area based on (a) the positions of the plurality of tissue types in the deformed and modified model template and (b) a position of the abnormal tissue in the deformed and modified model template;
• determining an electrode placement layout that maximizes field strength in at least a portion of the abnormal tissue by using the model of electrical properties to simulate electromagnetic field distributions in the body area caused by simulated electrodes placed at a plurality of different sets of candidate positions respective to the body area, and selecting one of the sets;
• and
• outputting the determined electrode placement layout for subsequent use as a guide for placing electrodes respective to the body area of the patient prior to use of the electrodes for electrotherapeutic treatment.

A method for improving an electrotherapeutic treatment comprising:

• receiving, by a processor of a computer system, a three-dimensional image of a body area of a patient;
• identifying portions of the image that correspond to abnormal tissue;
• generating a data set corresponding to the image with the abnormal tissue masked out;
• retrieving a model template from a memory device of the computer system, wherein the model template specifies positions of a plurality of tissue types in a corresponding body area of a healthy individual that is distinct from the patient;
• deforming the model template in space so that features in the deformed model template line up with corresponding features in the data set;
• modifying portions of the deformed model template that correspond to the masked-out portion of the data set so that the modified portions represent the abnormal tissue;
• generating a model of electrical properties of tissues in the body area based on (a) the positions of the plurality of tissue types in the deformed and modified model template and (b) a position of the abnormal tissue in the deformed and modified model template;
• determining an electrode placement layout that maximizes field strength in at least a portion of the abnormal tissue by using the model of electrical properties to simulate electromagnetic field distributions in the body area caused by simulated electrodes placed at a plurality of different sets of candidate positions respective to the body area, and selecting one of the sets;
• and
• outputting the determined electrode placement layout for subsequent use as a guide for placing electrodes respective to the body area of the patient prior to use of the electrodes for electrotherapeutic treatment.