Method and apparatus for laser ablation under ultrasound guidance

A method for minimally invasive laser ablation of a target tissue within a patient while sparing tissue within a safety zone proximate to the target tissue, comprising:

• guiding a laser fiber within a patient with a guidance tool;
• measuring a temperature within the target tissue using one or more of an invasive thermal sensor and a non-invasive thermal sensor;
• computing a thermal profile of the target tissue and the safety zone based on at least a combination the temperatures measured by the invasive thermal sensor and the non-invasive thermal sensor in conjunction with a real-time tissue image adapted for guidance of the laser fiber with the guidance tool within the patient;
• and
• controlling a laser to deliver energy through the laser fiber, to deliver a minimally therapeutic ablation therapy to the target tissue while ensuring that the safety zone is continually maintained in a non-ablation condition, based on at least a treatment plan, the measured temperature, and the thermal profile;
• generating a thermal map based on the thermal profile, wherein the thermal map illustrates the combination of the temperatures measured by the invasive thermal sensor and the non-invasive thermal sensor, an isocontour representing a highest temperature allowable within the safety zone, and an isocontour representing a lowest temperature allowable within the target tissue;
• and
• causing the thermal map to be overlaid on the real-time ultrasound image.

A non-transitory computer readable medium which stores computer readable instructions to control a programmable processor, for support of minimally invasive laser ablation of a target tissue within a patient while sparing tissue within a safety zone proximate to the target tissue, to perform the steps of:

• receiving data representing at least one temperature within a target tissue and the safety zone based on information from at least one invasive thermal sensor and at least one non-invasive thermal sensor;
• computing a thermal profile of the target tissue and the safety zone based on at least a combination of the at least one temperature within a target tissue and the safety zone based on information from the at least one invasive thermal sensor and the at least one non-invasive thermal sensor in conjunction with a real-time tissue image adapted for guidance of a laser fiber toward the target tissue;
• controlling a laser to deliver energy through the laser fiber, to deliver a minimally therapeutic ablation therapy to the target tissue while ensuring that the safety zone is continually maintained in a non-ablation condition, based on at least a treatment plan, the measured temperature, and the thermal profile;
• generating a thermal map basal on the thermal profile, wherein the thermal map illustrates the combination of the temperatures measured by the invasive thermal sensor and the non-invasive thermal sensor, an isocontour representing a highest temperature allowable within the safety zone, and an isocontour representing a lowest temperature allowable within the target tissue;
• and
• causing the thermal map to be overlaid on the real-time ultrasound image.